II. Recommendations for the Work of Government in 2023

 

This year is the first year for fully implementing the guiding principles from the Party’s 20th National Congress. For the government to deliver, it is important, under the strong leadership of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, to do the following:

 

• follow the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era;

 

• implement the guiding principles from the Party’s 20th National Congress;

 

• act on the guidelines of the Central Economic Work Conference;

 

• make solid progress in advancing Chinese modernization;

 

• act on the general principle of pursuing progress while ensuring stability;

 

• fully and faithfully apply the new development philosophy on all fronts and move faster to create a new pattern of 

   development;

 

• promote high-quality development;

 

• give full consideration to both domestic and international imperatives;

 

• respond to Covid-19 and pursue economic and social development in a more coordinated way;

 

• better ensure development and security;

 

• deepen reform and opening up in all respects;

 

• boost market confidence;

 

• pursue the strategy of expanding domestic demand and deepen supply-side structural reform;

 

• give priority to ensuring stable growth, employment, and prices;

 

• effectively prevent and defuse major risks;

 

• promote a full economic recovery;

 

• effectively pursue higher-quality growth and appropriately increase economic output;

 

• keep working to improve people’s lives; and

 

• maintain overall social stability.

 

These efforts will set the stage for building a modern socialist country in all respects.

 

The main projected targets for development this year are as follows:

 

• GDP growth of around 5 percent;

 

• around 12 million new urban jobs;

 

• surveyed urban unemployment rate of around 5.5 percent;

 

• CPI increase of around 3 percent;

 

• growth in personal income that is generally in step with economic growth;

 

• steady increases in both the volume and quality of imports and exports;

 

• a basic equilibrium in the balance of payments;

 

• grain output of over 650 million metric tons;

 

• continued reductions in energy consumption per unit of GDP and in the discharge of major pollutants, with priority on

   controlling fossil fuel consumption; and

 

• steady improvements in the quality of the eco-environment.

 

This year, it is essential to prioritize economic stability and pursue progress while ensuring stability.

 

Confronted with a situation in which strategic opportunities, risks, and challenges are concurrent and uncertainties and unforeseen factors are rising, we should keep our policies consistent, stable, and targeted and see that they are carried out in a more coordinated way to create synergy for high-quality development.

 

We should enhance the intensity and effectiveness of our proactive fiscal policy. A deficit-to-GDP ratio of 3 percent has been projected for this year. We should improve preferential tax and fee policies, and extend and further refine policies on tax and fee cuts, tax rebates, and tax deferrals as the situation requires. We should see that at the primary level, basic living needs are met, salary payments are ensured, and normal government functioning is maintained.

 

We should do more to implement a prudent monetary policy in a targeted way. The M2 money supply and aggregate financing should increase generally in step with nominal economic growth to provide support for the real economy. The RMB exchange rate should be kept generally stable at an adaptive, balanced level.

 

In adopting industrial policies, we should give consideration to both development and security imperatives. We should promote the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, cultivate and strengthen strategic emerging industries, and take forceful steps to shore up weak links in industrial chains.

 

Scientific and technological policies should aim at building up our country’s strength and self-reliance in science and technology, and international cooperation should also be continued. The new system for mobilizing resources nationwide should be improved, we should better leverage the role of the government in pooling resources to make key technological breakthroughs, and enterprises should be encouraged and supported in playing the principal role in innovation. Greater support should be given for the training of scientific and technological personnel and teams.

 

Social policies should meet basic living needs. To effectively ensure people’s basic wellbeing, we should take concrete measures to fully implement the employment-first policy and place a higher priority on promoting the employment of young people, particularly college graduates.

 

China has entered a phase of regular Covid-19 response, in which prevention and control measures for Class B infectious diseases are applied. On the basis of a comprehensive and systematic review of epidemic response efforts, we must ensure our response is well-conceived, more targeted, and more effective. We should protect people’s health and prevent severe cases, with an emphasis on prevention and treatment for the elderly, children, and people with underlying medical conditions. Monitoring of the epidemic should be elevated to a higher level. Covid-19 vaccines should be upgraded and new drugs should be developed. We should ensure people’s access to medicines and medical services to protect their lives and health.

 

This year, a new central government leadership will take office. Going forward, the work outlined in the previous section of this report relating to economic and social development must be pushed forward with relentless efforts. I would now like to brief you on several key priorities.

 

1. Expanding domestic demand

 

We should give priority to the recovery and expansion of consumption. The incomes of urban and rural residents should be boosted through multiple channels. We should stabilize spending on big-ticket items such as automobiles and promote recovery in the consumption of consumer services in sectors such as catering, culture, tourism, and sports. We should see that government investment and policy incentives effectively drive investment society-wide.

 

It is proposed that 3.8 trillion yuan be allocated for special-purpose bonds for local governments this year. Implementation of major projects set out in the 14th Five-Year Plan will be sped up. Urban renewal projects should also be launched.

 

We should promote complementary development between regions and see that each region fully leverages its strengths. We should continue to step up support for economic and social development in areas badly hit by Covid-19. We should encourage and attract more private capital into major state projects and projects aimed at addressing areas of weakness in order to stimulate private investment.

 

2. Accelerating the modernization of the industrial system

 

Scientific and technological innovation must play a bigger role in supporting industrial development. We should continue the initiative to bolster industrial and supply chains, with a focus on key industrial chains in the manufacturing sector. We should pool quality resources and make concerted efforts to achieve breakthroughs in core technologies in key fields so as to fully unleash the vitality for innovation.

 

We should redouble efforts to explore and develop important energy and mineral resources, discover more reserves, and boost production. We should speed up the digitalization of traditional industries and SMEs to make them higher-end, smarter, and more eco-friendly. We should accelerate R&D and application of cutting-edge technologies and promote the application of scientific and technological advances. We should develop a smooth and efficient logistics system. We should strive to develop the digital economy, step up regular oversight, and support the development of the platform economy.

 

3. Unswervingly consolidating and developing the public sector and unswervingly encouraging, supporting, and guiding the

   development of the non-public sector

 

We should deepen reform of state-owned capital and SOEs and enhance the core competitiveness of SOEs. We should continue with a category-based approach to reform and see that SOEs fulfill both their economic and social responsibilities and that they improve their modern corporate governance with distinctive Chinese features.

 

We should, in accordance with the law, protect the property rights of private enterprises and the rights and interests of entrepreneurs and refine related policies. We should encourage and support the private sector and private businesses in growing and expanding and support MSMEs and self-employed individuals in business development.

 

We should cultivate a cordial and clean relationship between government and business and create an environment in which enterprises under all forms of ownership can compete and grow on a level playing field. Effective measures and policies should be rolled out to stabilize market expectations and boost market confidence.

 

4. Intensifying efforts to attract and utilize foreign investment

 

We should expand market access and continue to open up the modern services sector. We should ensure national treatment for foreign-funded companies.

 

We should take active steps to see China join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and accede to other high-standard economic and trade agreements, and steadily expand institutional opening up by proactively adopting relevant rules, regulations, management, and standards. We should improve planning for regional opening up, upgrade pilot free trade zones, and give play to the role of platforms for opening up, such as the Hainan Free Trade Port and various development zones, as testing grounds. We should continue to leverage the role of imports and exports in driving economic growth. We should improve services for foreign-funded companies and facilitate the launch of landmark foreign-funded projects.

 

With a vast and open market, China is sure to provide even greater business opportunities for foreign companies in China.

 

5. Effectively preventing and defusing major economic and financial risks

 

We need to deepen reform of the financial system, improve financial regulation, and see that all those involved assume their full responsibilities to guard against regional and systemic financial risks. We should ensure effective risk prevention and mitigation in high-quality, leading real estate enterprises, help them improve debt-to-asset ratios, and prevent unregulated expansion in the real estate market to promote stable development of the real estate sector.

 

To prevent and defuse local government debt risks, we should improve the mix of debt maturities, reduce the burden of interest payments, and prevent a build-up of new debts while working to reduce existing ones.

 

6. Stabilizing grain output and advancing rural revitalization

 

We should adopt an integrated approach to promoting agricultural and rural modernization. We should keep total grain acreage at a stable level, promote the production of oilseed crops, and launch a new drive to increase grain production capacity by 50 million metric tons. We should improve contingency plans for ensuring the provision of agricultural supplies at stable prices. We should strengthen farmland protection and ramp up the development of high-standard cropland, facilities for irrigation and water conservancy, and other agricultural infrastructure. We should invigorate the seed industry and support the development of agricultural science, technology, and equipment.

 

We should refine the mechanisms for ensuring the incomes of grain growers and for compensating major grain-producing areas. We should adopt an all-encompassing approach to food and build a diversified food supply system. Rural industries with local features should be fostered to create more channels for increasing rural incomes. Our achievements in poverty alleviation should be consolidated and expanded to prevent large-scale relapse into poverty. Rural development initiatives should be advanced. We must meticulously and effectively carry out work related to the extension of rural land contracts for an additional 30 years.

 

7. Continuing the transition to green development

 

Pollution prevention and control should be intensified. We should take more robust and comprehensive measures to improve river basins, upgrade urban-rural environmental infrastructure, and continue to implement major projects for protecting and restoring key ecosystems. We should promote R&D for the clean and efficient use of energy, move faster to develop a new energy system, and increase the share of renewable energy in China’s energy mix.

 

We should improve the policies and financial tools for green development, develop the circular economy, and promote efficient and intensive use of resources. We should advance energy conservation and reduce carbon emissions and pollution in key areas and continue working to keep our skies blue, waters clear, and lands clean.

 

8. Meeting people’s basic living needs and developing social programs

 

We should improve the housing support system, support people in buying their first homes or improving their housing situation, help resolve the housing problems of new urban residents and young people, and accelerate renovations of old residential communities and dilapidated houses.

 

We should work faster to build a high-quality educational system, promote high-quality, balanced development and urban-rural integration of compulsory education, advance public-benefit preschool education and special needs education, and intensify efforts to develop vocational education. We should continue to explore new ground in higher education, support the development of universities and colleges in the central and western regions, and further integrate sports with education.

 

We should deepen reform of the medicine and healthcare systems and promote the coordinated development and governance of medical insurance, medical services, and pharmaceuticals. We should see that more quality medical resources are made available and weighted toward the community level and ensure that they are more evenly distributed among regions. We should implement the major project to revitalize traditional Chinese medicine. Great importance should be attached to mental and psychological health.

 

We need to pursue a proactive national strategy in response to population aging, improve elderly care services, and refine supporting policies on childbirth. We should protect the legitimate rights and interests of women, children, the elderly, and people with disabilities. We should see that service members and their families, ex-service members, and other entitled groups receive the benefits and subsidies they are entitled to.

 

We should develop cultural programs and the cultural sector. We should work to make social governance more effective. Workplace safety supervision should be strengthened, and disaster prevention, mitigation, and relief efforts should be bolstered.

 

We should fully apply a holistic approach to national security and advance the Peaceful China Initiative to a higher level.

 

We should take steps to strengthen government self-improvement, continue to transform government functions, carry out effective institutional reform, and push forward with building a law-based, innovation-driven, and service-oriented government of integrity. We should harness the spirit of hard work, engage in extensive research and fact-finding activities, and strive to increase administrative efficiency and public trust in government.

 

Fellow Deputies,

 

We should, with a focus on forging a strong sense of community for the Chinese nation, uphold and improve the system of regional ethnic autonomy and encourage all our ethnic groups to strive in unity for common prosperity and development.

 

We should adhere to the Party’s basic policy on religious affairs, follow the principle that religions in China must be Chinese in orientation, and provide active guidance to religions so that they can adapt themselves to socialist society.

 

We should strengthen and improve our work related to Chinese nationals overseas to forge a powerful force for all the sons and daughters of the Chinese nation, both at home and abroad, to work together to make remarkable achievements.

 

We should fully implement Xi Jinping’s thinking on strengthening the military and the military strategy for the new era. Our armed forces, with a focus on the goals for the centenary of the People’s Liberation Army in 2027, should work to carry out military operations, boost combat preparedness, and enhance military capabilities so as to accomplish the tasks entrusted to them by the Party and the people.

 

The armed forces should intensify military training and preparedness across the board, develop new military strategic guidance, devote greater energy to training under combat conditions, and make well-coordinated efforts to strengthen military work in all directions and domains.

 

We should improve all-around military governance and build on and expand the gains of national defense and military reform. We should see that military operations, capacity building, and combat preparedness are well-coordinated in fulfilling major tasks and speed up the implementation of major defense-related projects.

 

We should consolidate and enhance integration of national strategies and strategic capabilities and step up capacity building in science, technology, and industries related to national defense. We should enhance public awareness about national defense.

 

We in governments at all levels should give strong support to the development of national defense and the armed forces and conduct extensive activities to promote mutual support between civilian sectors and the military. In doing so, we will open a new chapter of unity between the military and the government and between the military and the people.

 

We should fully, faithfully, and resolutely implement the policy of One Country, Two Systems, under which the people of Hong Kong administer Hong Kong and the people of Macao administer Macao, both with a high degree of autonomy.

 

We should remain committed to law-based governance in Hong Kong and Macao and ensure that constitutional order in the two regions is upheld as stipulated in China’s Constitution and the basic laws of the two regions, and that Hong Kong and Macao are administered by patriots.

 

We should support Hong Kong and Macao in growing their economies and improving the lives of their people and maintain long-term prosperity and stability in the two regions.

 

We should implement our Party’s overall policy for the new era on resolving the Taiwan question, adhere to the one-China principle and the 1992 Consensus, and take resolute steps to oppose “Taiwan independence” and promote reunification. We should promote the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations and advance the process of China’s peaceful reunification.

 

As we Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are one family bound by blood, we should advance economic and cultural exchanges and cooperation across the Taiwan Strait and improve the systems and policies that contribute to the wellbeing of our Taiwan compatriots. We should encourage people on both sides of the Strait to jointly promote Chinese culture and advance China’s rejuvenation.

 

We should stay committed to an independent foreign policy of peace and to peaceful development and pursue friendship and cooperation with other countries on the basis of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence.

 

We should remain firm in pursuing a strategy of opening up for mutual benefit. We should continue working to safeguard world peace, contribute to global development, and uphold the international order.

 

China stands ready to work with the international community to put into action the Global Development Initiative and the Global Security Initiative and promote the shared values of humanity.

 

Let us join hands to promote the building of a human community with a shared future and safeguard world peace and regional stability.

 

Fellow Deputies,

 

Great achievements can only come from hard work; a bright future can only be secured through solid efforts.

 

Let us rally more closely around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, hold high the great banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics, follow the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and fully implement the guiding principles from the Party’s 20th National Congress.

 

Let us forge ahead with perseverance and resolve, promote sound and sustainable economic and social development, and keep working to build a modern socialist country in all respects.

 

Let us strive to advance national rejuvenation on all fronts and build China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful.