China's Premier Elaborates on Post-SARS Tasks

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, June 30, 2003

China's Premier Elaborates on Post-SARS Tasks

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Premier Wen Delivers Speech

China will plan carefully, taking into consideration both current tasks and longer term needs, in order to roll back the aftermath of SARS and maintain a rapid, sustained and sound economic development, said Premier Wen Jiabao Sunday in Hong Kong.

Speaking at the signing ceremony of the Mainland/Hong Kong Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA), Wen told people from various communities in Hong Kong that China will focus on the following four aspects for the near term.

First, to expand domestic demand and readjust the economic structure.

"Be it to overcome immediate difficulties or to achieve long-term development, expanding domestic demand should always be the fundamental guideline we must follow," said Wen.

At present, such a task requires China's redoubled efforts to readjust the economic structure. China needs to do a better job ina number of key engineering projects that have a major bearing on the overall development of the nation, step up technological innovation of enterprises and give support and guidance to those industries and sectors that can significantly contribute to economic growth, said Wen.

"We must invest more in the development of the public health system and rural infrastructure, and follow through on the preferential measures for the hard-hit sectors and enterprises with action plans to hasten their reinvigoration," he said, adding centers of disease control (CDCs) will be established at both central and local levels.

Second, to take an overall and coordinated approach for balanced development. The most important lesson China has learned from fighting SARS is that throughout the entire process of modernization, it is imperative to follow an overall and coordinated approach, striving to achieve a harmonious development between the economy and society, between the urban areas and rural areas, and between the different regions and localities, and to achieve a harmonious coexistence between mankind and Mother Nature,Wen said.

The premier said China should redouble the efforts to accelerate the development of education, health care, culture and other social undertakings. Right now, China is working on plans toquicken the building of the public health system, increase support for agriculture and rural development, continue the implementation of the western development strategy, speed up the readjustment, innovation and rejuvenation of the old industrial bases and move ahead needed interactions between the country's eastern and western regions.

China should also strengthen the protection of environment and ecosystem and achieve sustainable development, he added.

Third, to deepen reform and open still wider to the outside world. Through careful study and summing up of past experience, China is in the process of formulating new measures of deeper and more comprehensive reforms in keeping with the requirement for a more mature socialist market economy, Wen said.

These include implementing multiple effective methods of realizing public ownership, faster development of individual, private and other non-public sectors, better modern market system allowing greater exercise of the fundamental role of the market in allocation of resources, deepened reforms of state-owned enterprises, the financial system, taxation and the investment and banking system, faster transformation of government functions, better macro economic control and regulatory system and improved government performance in social management and public services, he said.

The premier said that China will deepen reforms in foreign-related economic systems, putting in place a stable, transparent and unified system of management and a regime of laws and regulations in this regard and fully honoring China's WTO commitments. China will continue to implement the opening-up strategy featuring both "bringing in" and " going global" programs.

Fourth, to promote employment and improve people's living standards. Shortage of jobs has always been a big problem in China's economic and social development, and SARS has made the situation even worse, Wen said.

As the issue bears so critically on the vital interest of the people, China has taken and will continue to take forceful policy measures to generate jobs mainly by developing labor-intensive industries that have a promising market prospect, supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, helping the individual, private and other non-public enterprises to grow and cultivating a sound environment and mechanism for employment, said the premier.

China will strive to increase the income of urban and rural dwellers, farmers' income in particular, improve the social security system, show greater care for the needy and improve the material and cultural life and the health standards of all the people, he said.

China has entered a new development stage of building a well-off society in an all-round way and accelerating its socialist modernization drive. "We must adapt to the larger trend of economic globalization and scientific and technological advancement, grasp firmly the strategic opportunities of great promises and build China into a better country with our dedicated work," said Wen.

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