High-profile meeting identifies China's next-stage reform priorities

BEIJING -- China's top leaders have outlined priorities and tasks for the next-stage reform at a key meeting on Friday, which is expected to play a crucial role in the country's pursuit of a new development paradigm.

Comprehensively deepening reform is closely related to implementing the new development philosophy and establishing a new development paradigm, according to the 18th meeting of the central committee for deepening overall reform.

Stressing full, accurate and comprehensive implementation of the new development philosophy, the meeting called for focusing on the task of establishing a new development paradigm, introducing more targeted reform plans and pushing forward reform to a deeper level.

The following are some key areas of reform highlighted at the meeting:

-- Reform will be deepened to pursue high-level independence in scientific innovation.

The meeting underscored the importance to remove institutional barriers that restrict the improvement of the core competitiveness of science and technology, break through the bottleneck of core technologies and industries, and firmly grasp the initiatives of innovation and development.

Value-added output by China's high-tech manufacturing sector saw a 7.1 percent growth last year, compared with the 2.8 percent increase in the overall industrial output, official data showed.

-- Reform will be deepened to smooth economic circulation.

More targeted measures will be introduced to improve a fair competition system, strengthen the protection of property rights and intellectual property rights, unleash the vitality of market entities, promote the upgrade of industrial and supply chains, establish a modern logistics system and build a unified national market.

-- Reform will be pushed forward to further expand domestic demand.

Efforts will be made to improve systems and mechanisms for coordinated regional development and integrated urban-rural development, as well as accelerate the development of a new type of urbanization that puts people at the core.

Further reforms will be pushed in the land system and household registration system, while a mechanism shall be established to consolidate outcomes of poverty alleviation while enhancing rural vitalization works, the meeting noted.

In a recent interview with Xinhua, Ning Jizhe, deputy head of the National Development and Reform Commission, said China will further enhance demand-side management and expand domestic demand by tapping the potential in new consumption models, increasing effective investment and implementing development strategies such as coordinated regional development and people-centered urbanization.

-- Reform will be advanced to push for high-level opening-up.

To establish an open economy at a higher level, the meeting urged further opening up of market factors, the introduction of better rules, regulation, management and standards, improvement in the legal system and progress in fostering a market-oriented, law-based and internationalized business environment.

China further strengthened connections with the rest of the world in 2020, with the signing of the landmark Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and the conclusion of negotiations for the China-EU investment treaty.

The country's commerce ministry has pledged to continue widening market access for foreign investment and fully implement a new negative list for foreign investment, further lifting restrictive measures.

-- Reform will be strengthened to promote the shift to green development.

China will formulate an action plan for peaking carbon emissions before 2030 to ensure its development based on efficient use of resources, strict protection of the ecological environment and effective control of greenhouse gas emissions, the meeting said.

The meeting reviewed and approved a guideline on establishing and improving the value realization mechanism of ecological products.

The meeting also stressed efforts to explore a market-based, sustainable way to realize the value of ecological products with government domination and participation of enterprises and other sectors of the society.