Click here to read the introduction and analysis of this document

Xinhua (Beijing), April 29 — The Politburo of the Communist Party of China (CCP) Central Committee convened a meeting on April 29. It analyzed and studied the current economic situation and economic work, and deliberated the National Talent Development Plan for the 14th Five-Year Plan Period [2021–2025]. The General Secretary of the CCP Central Committee, Xi Jinping, presided over the meeting.

The meeting held that since the start of this year, in the face of a complex situation resulting from the overlapping of unseen-in-a-century changes with the once-in-a-century pandemic, under the strong leadership of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, all localities and departments have effectively coordinated epidemic prevention and control with socio-economic development, China’s economic operation has on the whole achieved a smooth start [this year], and we successfully held the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, and the Winter Paralympic Games. These achievements were not easy to come by.

The meeting pointed out that COVID-19 and the Ukraine crisis had led to an increase in risks and challenges. The complexity, severity and uncertainty in China’s economic development environment have risen; stable growth, stable employment and stable prices now face new challenges. It is crucial to effectively carry out economic work and practically protect and improve people’s wellbeing. We must firm our confidence, overcome difficulties, and ensure that the major principles and policies of the Party Central Committee are fully implemented.

The meeting stressed that the epidemic must be kept under control, the economy must be kept stable, and development must be secure. These are clear requirements of the Party Central Committee. According to the new characteristics of virus mutation and spread, we must:

— coordinate efficiently epidemic prevention and control with socio-economic development;

— adhere unwaveringly to the principle of the people as paramount and lives as paramount;

— persist in preventing foreign importation and domestic resurgence [of the COVID virus];

— persist in the dynamic zero policy;

— protect the people’s lives and health to the maximum possible extent; and

— minimize the epidemic’s impact on socio-economic development to the greatest possible degree.

The meeting set out the following requirements:

— increase macro policy adjustments, firmly stabilize the economy, strive to realize the anticipated economic and social development goals for the year, and keep the economy operating within reasonable parameters;

— accelerate the implementation of policies already set, execute effectively policies such as tax rebates, tax cuts and fee reductions, and make good use of various monetary policy tools;

— rapidly devise policy tools to increase demand, increase the intensity of targeted interventions, and achieve the appropriate preparedness and redundancy for goal-guided policies;

— make every effort to expand domestic demand, realize the key role of effective investment, strengthen assurances for land use, energy use and environmental impact assessment, and so on, and strengthen basic infrastructure construction across the board;

— give play to the driving role of consumption in economic cycles;

— stabilize market participants, and implement a package of relief and assistance policies targeted at sectors, micro, small and medium enterprises, and sole proprietors, that have been seriously hit by the epidemic;

— effectively carry out the work of ensuring supply and price stability of energy and resources, and effectively ensure spring plowing and preparation work;

— effectively safeguard and improve people’s wellbeing, stabilize and expand employment, organize the supply of important commodities related to the people’s wellbeing, ensure the core functions of urban centers are operational, stabilize and control the situation regarding safe production, and safeguard overall social stability; and

— adhere to [the notion of having] one coordinated national strategy, ensure transportation and logistics are unobstructed, and ensure the normal operations of priority industrial and supply chains, enterprises supplying and supporting the anti-epidemic effort, and key basic infrastructures.

The meeting stressed the need to effectively control key risks and hold the bottom line of ensuring that no systemic risks emerge. We must:

— adhere to the position that housing is for people to live in and not for speculation;

— support localities improving their real estate policies on the basis of local realities;

— support the needs of inelastic housing demands and demands from those upgrading from their existing properties;

— improve the supervision of commercial [residential] property presale capital; and

— promote the stable and healthy development of the real estate market.

We must respond promptly to the concerns of the market, steadily push forward stock issuance registration system reform, actively bring in long-term investors, and maintain the smooth operation of capital markets.

We must promote the healthy development of the platform economy, complete certain rectification projects, implement regularized supervision, and introduce specific measures to support its regulated and healthy development.

The meeting pointed out that we must persist in taking care of our own affairs. [We must:]

— accelerate the construction of a new development paradigm;

— deepen unswervingly supply-side structural reform;

— use reforms as a method by which to solve problems in development;

— accelerate the realization of high-level technological self-reliance; and

— build a strong and resilient national economic circulation system.

We must also persist in expanding high-level openness to the outside world, actively respond to the appeals of foreign-funded enterprises doing business in China regarding the ease of doing business and so on, and stabilize the fundamentals of foreign trade and investment.

The meeting stressed that leading cadres at all levels must have a “never complacent” sense of responsibility, take charge, be practical and pragmatic, and prevent all kinds of  “black swan” and “grey rhino” events. Party committees and governments at all levels must unite and lead cadres and the masses to work together tenaciously and welcome the successful convening of the 20th National Party Congress with practical action.

The meeting pointed out that the preparation of the National Talent Development Plan for the 14th Five-Year Plan Period [2021–2025] is an important task arranged by the Party Central Committee. It is a concrete measure in implementing the spirit of the Central Conference on Talent Work [of September 2021], and an important special plan of the national 14th Five-Year Plan. We must comprehensively strengthen the leadership of the Party in talent work, firmly establish the strategic position of talent-led development, and comprehensively cultivate, bring in, and harness talent.

The meeting emphasized that we must stick to the key arrangements and advance in stages, and accelerate the building of [China into] a key world talent center and innovation highland. Beijing, Shanghai, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area should maintain high standards and strive to become model zones for building talent highlands. Some cities with concentrations of high-level talent should take effective measures to build platforms to attract and gather talent, and accelerate the formation of strategic pivot points and flying geese patterns [for talent development].

We must:

— vigorously train and harness scientists of strategic [importance];

— develop a large number of first-class scientific and technological leaders and innovation teams;

— create a large-scale troop of young scientific and technological talent; and

— train a large number of outstanding engineers;

The focus of talent development should be on supporting and cultivating basic research talent, and providing them with long-term and stable support. We must deepen the reform of the systems and mechanisms for talent development and build a platform for work and entrepreneurship by all kinds of talent.

Party committees (Party groups) at all levels must:

— strengthen their direct responsibilities;

— improve the work paradigm under which the Party is in charge of talent;

— coordinate and promote the implementation of major initiatives on talent work to ensure their effectiveness;

— actively solve problems for employers and talent;

— strengthen political leadership over, and political absorption of, talent; and