Of all China's achievements, the one that has impressed former New Zealand prime minister Jenny Shipley the most is the country's investment in education.

Shipley has visited China over 100 times since her first visit in 1995, and said the country surprises her every time.

"For a country like China to improve its literacy rates from where they were to over 95 percent today is an extraordinary and phenomenal investment in the future," she said.

Shipley was in China to attend the Imperial Springs International Forum in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, last month.

After the conclusion of the two-day event, President Xi Jinping met with foreign representatives at the forum, including Shipley, in Beijing on Dec 12.

Shipley, 66, said other aspects of the country's progress were also impressive, including lifting more than 700 million people out of poverty, raising per capita income, and the economic growth momentum that China has contributed to the world.

"The decisions that China took not to devalue its currency in the Asian financial crisis, and then in the global financial crisis, were all important gifts to the world," she said.

"But I think the greatest achievement that I've watched is the investment that China has put on education. And I think that is going to create a strength and platform for China for many years to come."

Robust bilateral relations

As the only woman to have led New Zealand's National Party, Shipley became the country's first female prime minister in 1997. She remained PM until her party lost the 1999 elections.

Shipley said she is very proud of the progress that China and New Zealand have made in their relations.

"New Zealand is very admiring of China's success to lift 700 million people out of poverty to create growth here at home that then affected abroad," she said. "We have benefited from China's success.

"China's success has been New Zealand's success because of the growth in the Asia-Pacific."

The New Zealand-China Free Trade Agreement signed between the two countries in 2008 has been an important success, Shipley said, adding that New Zealand was one of the earliest supporters of China's entry into the World Trade Organization in 2001.

"I think we both learned from each other, and it's delivered many advantages for both economies," she said. "I think our shared commitment to multilateralism today and shared values among two quite different countries can help improve the world."

Shipley said the New Zealand side has great hopes for the future of the bilateral relationship.

"We want further improvement on our free trade agreement," she said. "We have a strong relationship, a respected relationship, and successive governments seek to work constructively on the New Zealand-China relationship."