HEFEI, April 27 -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged Party and government officials to map out reform measures catering to people's demands, anticipating "many hardships" to be solved in the country's reform.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks during his inspection in east China's Anhui Province from April 24 to 27 on the region's implementation of the 2016-2020 national development plan.

Acknowledging the pressure from downward economic trends and growing social issues, Xi said that "bottom-line responsibility" to ensure people's livelihoods should be fulfilled and reform should start with the "issues people feel most strongly about."

"As supply-side structural reform deepens, some employees will be laid off," Xi said. "We should pay more attention to employment, create more jobs, and implement and improve assistance measures."

Xi cited methods such as encouraging businesses to arrange more job openings, creating public welfare jobs as well as policy support to help people find jobs as soon as possible.

The president urged various local regions to bear in mind their own realities when following development plans to optimize current supply structures, improve product quality, foster new industries and offer new products and services.