by Xinhua writers Gu Zhenqiu, Sun Xiaoling

LONDON, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- The reform and opening-up policy China launched in 1978 has not only changed the country itself, but has had a profound influence on the rest of the world, Alan Barrell, a British expert on entrepreneurship, said in a recent interview with Xinhua.

"It has changed the world," he said.

Barrell, an entrepreneur in residence at the Center for Entrepreneurial Learning of Cambridge Judge Business School, said he has witnessed the huge changes over the past four decades in China.

"Look at China's high-speed train, an amazing development," he said. In August 2008, China launched the country's first high-speed railway line, which allows trains to run at over 300 km per hour now.

He recalled that when he went to China for the first time about 30 years ago, very few people could speak English, not many colorful clothes could be seen on the street, and the whole place was not so busy.

"Now when we go to China, we can see that it is a different world. It is transformed. Absolutely transformed," he said.

He took a picture of Pudong, Shanghai, 27 years ago, when it was far less developed. In comparison, now "you have a metropolis," he said, highlighting China's innovation and development over the past decades.

Such changes have "only happened with long-term planning, consistent government policies," he said.

One of the biggest benefits of long-term governance is the consistency in strategy and policies, he added.

Barrell said he thinks China's reform and opening-up was not just about money or economic growth. "It was a much bigger idea ... the world has not always appreciated the importance" of the strategy, he said.

The policy launched 40 years ago has allowed the Chinese people to increasingly interact with the world. Barrell, who is also a distinguished guest professor at Xiamen University and some other Chinese universities, noted the increase in the number of Chinese students studying overseas.

The reform and opening-up is still having "an impact every day, even today," he said.

He said the words of the Chinese leaders at the first China International Import Expo in Shanghai showed that China is committed to promoting trade.

The Belt and Road Initiative proposed by China, which advocates efforts to enhance infrastructural connectivity so as to drive economic growth, is also a plan for economic development through opening-up, he added.