Beijing, China - Oct 10, 2026 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of media professionals from across Global South learning about big data analysis system at Beijing Citizen Service Hotline Center
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Zornitsa Bliznashka, Bulgarian radio journalist (partially overlaid with shot 3):
"I'm really impressed with the size of the building you have and all of the people who work 24/7. This is some kind of a really good organization. I'm also impressed with the way that how you combine the human with AI working together and you collect data in such a fast notice. And for me it was a surprise that even you have an assistant that I can ask for real time a question and it answers in a minute. Well, in my city we don't have such a service, so it will be a great way to show it to us. And not only to show it, but to teach us how to use it because it would really be interesting to implement it in my country. Because if you have such a number that you know that you can call all the time, 24/7, it's really important, so people know that there is something that somebody that always can help me."
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
3. Various of foreign media professionals during visit, staff member walking delegation through center's operations
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
4. Various of foreign media professionals during visit
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Mihaly Zsiros, host/reporter, Hungary's Hir TV (partially overlaid with shot 6):
"I was very surprised, but from a positive aspect because we don't have similar one at home. And it's great that the government wants to help people, have citizens to get, if they have questions, to get answers in a quick way. Because, for example in Hungary, it would take a lot of time to get some answers to your problems. As I've seen, not just Beijing, but China, became one of the leaders of technology in the world. In Europe, we use a lot of Chinese brands, a lot of Chinese technology, artificial intelligence as well. So yeah, we have to learn from you; we want to. I'm here, because I want to learn from you."
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
6. Various of staff working in office, foreign media professionals
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
7. Foreign media professionals listening to introduction
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Valon Salai, journalist from North Macedonia:
"Maybe it's really hard to develop something like this or to invest such a big complex system like this kind of hotline you are having in China. But in this way we can also start thinking that something may be similar to this, maybe more simple than this complex system, but similar to this one and to start and having better, I can say, better relation between government and the population and let's start solving more problems or issues to our citizens."
9. Various of slogan, foreign media professionals

Visiting media professionals from across the Global South have praised the swift-response citizen service hotline in China's capital, Beijing, describing it as a model of inclusiveness and efficiency that they hope their home countries can emulate.

Beijing's 12345 hotline is the city's unified government service platform, allowing residents to report problems, lodge complaints, and seek information on public services ranging from utilities and transportation to healthcare and housing.

Since 2019, the hotline has evolved from a traditional call center into a smart governance hub powered by big data and artificial intelligence (AI). Data generated by the hotline helps identify recurring issues and informs policy decisions, turning everyday public concerns into input for improving urban services.

A delegation of international journalists toured the Beijing Citizen Service Hotline Center on Saturday, where staff walked them through the hotline's daily operations.

Inside the center, calls are converted into real-time heat maps and trend labels, with AI assisting in dispatch, quality checks, and analysis. All channels, including phone calls, text messages, photos, videos, sign language and multiple languages, feed into a single system, where every request becomes a case.

Many said they were impressed by the system's inclusiveness and cross-department coordination.

For Zornitsa Bliznashka, a radio journalist from Bulgaria, the most striking feature was the seamless combination of human staff and AI—and the speed at which the system responds to public needs. Her comments echoed a common theme among the visiting journalists: the value of a service that citizens can rely on at any hour.

"I'm really impressed with the size of the building you have and all of the people who work 24/7. This is some kind of a really good organization. I'm also impressed with the way you combine humans and AI working together, and you collect data so quickly. And for me, it was a surprise that you even have an assistant that I can ask a question in real time, and it answers in a minute. Well, in my city we don't have such a service, so it would be a great way to show it to us. And not only to show it, but to teach us how to use it because it would really be interesting to implement it in my country. Because if you have such a number that you know that you can call all the time, 24/7, it's really important, so people know that there is something that somebody can always help me," she said.

Mihaly Zsiros, a host and reporter from Hungary's Hir TV, drew a contrast with the situation back home, where getting answers to public problems may take far longer. Beyond the hotline itself, he pointed to China's broader rise as a global technology leader and said that is precisely why he came to learn.

"I was very surprised, but from a positive aspect because we don't have similar one at home. And it's great that the government wants to help people, have citizens to get, if they have questions, to get answers in a quick way. Because, for example in Hungary, it would take a lot of time to get some answers to your problems. As I've seen, not just Beijing, but China, became one of the leaders of technology in the world. In Europe, we use a lot of Chinese brands, a lot of Chinese technology, artificial intelligence as well. So yeah, we have to learn from you; we want to. I'm here, because I want to learn from you," he said.

Valon Salai, a journalist from North Macedonia, offered a more pragmatic take. While acknowledging that building such an elaborate system may be difficult for smaller countries, he said the visit had sparked ideas about how to improve communication between governments and citizens, even if through simpler means.

"Maybe it's really hard to develop something like this or to invest such a big complex system like this kind of hotline you are having in China. But in this way we can also start thinking that something may be similar to this, maybe more simple than this complex system, but similar to this one and to start and having better, I can say, better relation between government and the population and let's start solving more problems or issues to our citizens," he said.