On March 16, during its 213th Session, the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) elected the Secretary-General for the next three years. Liu Fang, the incumbent Secretary-General of ICAO from China and the only candidate, was re-elected.

Liu Fang’s new tenure will start from August 1, 2018 to July 31, 2021. Since taking office on August 1, 2015, Liu Fang has been taking active measures and committing to reforms, in an effort to improve the efficiency of the ICAO Secretariat, advance the development of technical standards and recommended practices in the field of international civil aviation, and vigorously promote the important role of aviation in the economic and social development of the member states. Also, she promoted the implementation of ICAO's "No Country Left Behind" initiative, to assist the member countries in reinforcing the development of their civil aviation system. The achievements made since her role as secretary-general have been well recognized by the member states and the international civil aviation community.

The ICAO is a specialized United Nations agency responsible for developing technical standards and policies in the field of international civil aviation. There are currently 192 member states and China is a Part I council member state. The ICAO develops conventions, policies, as well as Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) for international air transport, to promote the safe and efficient operation of the global civil aviation industry. Secretary General is the Chief Executive Officer of ICAO who leads the secretariat of the organization and leads the international employees in carrying out work in the field of international civil aviation. Directly under the secretariat, there are Air Navigation Bureau, Air Transport Bureau, Legal Affairs and External Relations Bureau, Technical Cooperation Bureau and Bureau of Administration and Service.

China is one of the founding countries of ICAO. China’s civil aviation industry has achieved continuous, safe and rapid development over the years. In 2017, the civil aviation industry registered a total transport turnover of 108.31 billion ton-km, transported 552 million passengers and 7.058 million tons of cargo and mail. By the end of 2017, the number of transport airports in China totaled 229, of which 32 were with an annual passenger traffic of over 10 million; and there were 58 airlines with a total fleet size of 5588, of which 3296 were transport aircraft. China is among the front-runners in terms of civil aviation safety, with the major accident rate per million operation hours, major accident rate per million aircraft movements and death toll per 100 million passenger-km from 2013 to 2017 all standing at zero. By January 2018, China has signed bilateral air services agreements with 123 countries or regions; 784 international routes have been opened; 31 Chinese airlines operate flights to 167 cities in 61 countries; and scheduled international flights amount to 5507 per week.

In the international community, the civil aviation industry of China has been abiding by the Convention on International Civil Aviation. China has been a long-term active participant in various ICAO programs and has been conscientiously fulfilling its obligations as a Member State, thus contributing positively to the development of international civil aviation. China has provided training for over 400 aviation professionals from Asia, Africa and Latin America in the fields of aviation safety, aviation security, flight standards and airworthiness. Through the South-South Cooperation Assistance Fund, China supported ICAO in comprehensively enhancing the capabilities of civil aviation personnel of its member states, especially the developing countries. China is an active participant in the making of international civil aviation rules. By sending experts to participate in the development of standards for international civil aviation, it offers Chinese wisdom and a Chinese approach to such areas as aviation safety, aviation security, international navigation, economic management and emission reduction in aviation. China is an active advocate for the common development of global civil aviation communities, and promotes a greater role of aviation in realizing UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and building a community with a shared future for mankind. In May 2007, CAAC and ICAO signed an intent for cooperation to enhance the civil aviation capacity of countries along the Belt and Road. In January 2018, the first Asia Pacific Ministerial Conference on Civil Aviation was held in Beijing which adopted the Beijing Declaration, aiming for safer and more efficient development of civil aviation in the Asia Pacific region.