China welcomed the election on Tuesday of its vice-minister of finance as director-general of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, vowing to continue strengthening cooperation with the UN agency.

Li Yong, 61, won a majority of 37 votes from member states in the first round of voting on Monday, becoming the first person from the Chinese mainland to lead a UN agency.

He will succeed Kandeh Yumkella, from Sierra Leone, whose second term ends this month.

With a four-year term ahead, Li said the organization, founded in 1966, now faces many challenges such as funding problems, providing more services and shrinking confidence resulting from members' withdrawal.

"We have to plan for international development after 2015 and realign our roles," he said. "With support of the member states, other UN agencies and our global partners, we will achieve these goals."

Both China's Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Foreign Affairs congratulated Li shortly after his election, vowing to render continuous support to the organization and its new director-general.

"China has maintained close collaboration with UNIDO over the past 40 years," Ministry of Commerce spokesman Shen Danyang said.

"Through technology cooperation projects, the agency has brought to China advanced skills, management expertise and crucial equipment, contributing greatly to China's industrial and social development," he said.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying highlighted Li's talents on Tuesday.

"Li, long devoted to the endeavor of international development cooperation, has a good professional background and career experience," Hua said. "We believe the UNIDO secretariat will provide better service under his leadership."

Li is known as a senior Chinese economic and financial policymaker and has been a member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Chinese central bank for a decade.

Experts said that Li's breakthrough election reflects China's increased international standing and influence, given the fact that Chinese staff members in UN agencies have been scarce for years.

Zhang Xiaoan, vice-president of the UN Association of China, said that Li's experience in multilateral international institutions and his knowledge in economics will help him become accustomed to the new job.

"He might have to get familiar with the work of the organization, which requires a lot of professional knowledge, and he needs to adapt to its organizational culture, for example the complicated staff relations," Zhang said.

Zhang said China should realize the importance of increasing its representation in international organizations by dispatching more working staff to these agencies.

"We need to foster more talents at all levels who can meet the UN's working requirements," Zhang said.

Beating five other candidates from Afghanistan, Cambodia, Italy, Poland and Thailand, Li is supposed to be officially appointed to the post on Friday after the general conference concludes.

The organization, headquartered in Vienna with 172 member states, aims to improve the living conditions of people and promote global prosperity through offering tailor-made solutions for sustainable industrial development.

Asghar Soltanieh, Iran's envoy to UNIDO, said he is optimistic that its situation will be even better now with the support of China.

"I hope to witness further progress of the agency's work and promote South-South corporation under Li's leadership," Soltanieh was quoted by Xinhua as saying.

Jean-Claude Brou, Cote d'Ivoire's Minister of Industry, said the organization stands at a critical moment as its development in the next four years calls for a strong leader, and Li is the best choice.

China has plenty of success and experience in industrialization to pass to Africa, which is the shared dream of African nations, Brou added.

Xinhua contributed to the story.

puzhendong@chinadaily.com.cn