Li: New 5-Year Plan to focus on growth

Premier says improving livelihoods, preventing risks will be highlighted

Premier Li Keqiang stressed the need to boost infrastructure development, enhance the level of innovation, improve competitiveness in different sectors and better protect the environment in devising the country's development blueprint for the 2021-25 period.

Speaking on Monday in Beijing at a meeting on China's 14th Five-Year Plan, Li said the overall blueprint will focus on promoting economic growth, improving people's livelihoods and preventing and defusing risks.

In devising the blueprint, the government must continue to pursue development as the overarching goal and prioritize efforts to maintain major economic indicators within a reasonable range while pursuing high-quality development, he said.

Li said a host of measures on reform and opening-up will be rolled out to harness internal drivers of growth and stimulate market vitality.

He highlighted the importance of enabling a better relationship between government and market as well as government and society. Greater strides must be made in furthering reform to cut red tape, boost government oversight and services as well as fostering a business environment that is in line with market principles, the rule of law and international standards, Li added.

Authorities should come up with a host of major projects and programs that can address weaknesses, bolster growth momentum and benefit people's livelihoods, he said.

The role of the private sector must be better utilized, and people's living standards must be further improved during the period, he said.

Li warned that the external environment could be even more complicated, uncertain and challenging during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, which he said will be a crucial period for transforming the path of development, refining economic structure and fostering new growth drivers.

The blueprint must be based on national context and the country's development stage and also provide accurate judgments on development opportunities and thorough analysis of challenges and difficulties, said the premier.

It is important to stay committed to a people-centered approach and solve problems in the process of development through reform and innovation, he said.

The blueprint, which includes goals for growth, development strategies and key tasks, must provide good societal expectations and spur the whole country to work enterprisingly, Li said.

The premier also urged local authorities to ensure a good implementation of work laid out in the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) to lay a solid foundation for the following five years.