Government Work Report (2006)

Building a resource-conserving and environment-friendly society is given a high priority in the Outline (draft). It specifies clear tasks and measures and lists a number of key energy-saving projects, demonstration projects for developing a circular economy, and key projects to protect the ecology and improve the environment. Conscientiously fulfilling these tasks and measures will significantly increase the efficiency of resource consumption and basically halt the ecological and environmental deterioration. We must work ceaselessly if we are to create clean and pleasant living and working conditions for the people and leave our future generations with blue skies, green land, clear water and verdant mountains.

Third, we must promote balanced development among regions. The Outline (draft) defines the key tasks for the development of different regions. It calls for improving the market mechanism, the mechanism for promoting cooperation, the mechanism for mutual assistance and the support mechanism to ensure balance and interaction among different regions. The Outline (draft) groups state-owned land into four types of development priority zones -- optimal development zones, key development zones, restricted development zones and non-development zones -- based on resources, the carrying capacity of the environment, and development potential. Different policies will be adopted for different zones. In addition, the document emphasizes the need to actively and steadily promote urbanization to take full advantage of the leading role of groups of cities in driving development.

Fourth, we must strive to increase our capacity for independent innovation. This features strongly in the Outline (draft). We need to follow a policy of making independent innovations and "leapfrog" advances in key areas of science and technology and supporting and guiding future development. We need to more quickly turn China into an innovation-oriented country by comprehensively enhancing our capability to make original innovations, integrate innovations and assimilate advanced foreign technologies and further refine them. The Outline (draft) calls for launching a number of major scientific and technological projects in strategic industries such as information technology and biotechnology, and projects to address important, pressing problems in energy, resources, the environment and the health of the people, as well as technologies with both military and civilian applications. Successfully implementing these projects is of major and immediate significance and will have far-reaching importance for integrating our limited scientific and technological resources, speeding up the solution of crucial scientific and technological problems with a bearing on China's overall situation and long-term development, and raising the overall technological level in those areas. Accelerating development of education in science and technology and training professionals are essential in order to improve our capacity for independent innovation. The Outline (draft) also contains a master plan for this task.

Fifth, we must deepen reforms and open further to the outside world. None of the achievements made in China's economic and social development during the past 20 some years would have been possible if we had not resolutely carried out the reform and opening up policy. In order to complete the tasks for the present phase of development, we must unwaveringly and comprehensively deepen reforms and open still wider to the outside world. The Outline (draft) contains the requirement to speed up improvement of the socialist market economic system, and establish systems and mechanisms conducive to changing the pattern of economic growth and promoting comprehensive, balanced and sustainable development. We need to improve overall guidance and coordination for reforms and continue to promote reform of the political and cultural systems and the system of social management while carrying out economic restructuring. Reform, development and stability must be properly balanced. In line with the requirement to balance domestic development and opening to the outside world, we will follow a win-win strategy in opening the country and promote reform and development by opening wider to the outside world. In opening wider to the outside world, we must pay particular attention to safeguarding China's economic security.

Sixth, we must work hard to build a harmonious society. This is an important objective of social and economic development and guarantee for it. The Outline (draft) calls for doing a good job in population work; creating more jobs; improving the social security system, people's living standards and health and public safety; building socialist democracy; promoting cultural progress; and improving the system of social management. By working hard over the next five years, we can certainly make China a more harmonious country and enable the people to live even better lives!

Fulfilling all the tasks for this year and the entire period of the Eleventh Five-Year Plan places increased demands on governments at all levels. This means we must greatly intensify internal reform and self-improvement efforts.

We will accelerate reform of the administrative system and further transform government functions. We will continue to separate government functions from enterprise management, reduce the number of matters requiring administrative examination and approval, and standardize procedures for doing so. We will resolutely transfer responsibility for matters the government should not manage to the markets, enterprises, civil organizations and intermediary organizations. We will change the way the government manages the economy and improve its social management and public service functions. We will make government more open and improve the system for releasing information. We will establish a sound administrative accountability system, improve the government's ability to perform its duties and strengthen public trust.

We will work hard to build a clean government and combat corruption. We will conscientiously carry out all tasks and measures for punishing and preventing corruption. We will launch a campaign this year to combat bribery in business, focusing on unhealthy practices in construction, land transfers, property transactions, purchase and sale of drugs, and government procurement, in order to resolutely put a stop to irregular transactions, and we will investigate and prosecute cases of bribery in business in accordance with the law. We will continue to remedy improper practices that harm public interests and strive to resolve such outstanding problems as arbitrary educational charges and excessively high medical costs.

We must implement the Civil Servant Law and improve the training, supervision and oversight of civil servants. We will run the government strictly and mete out reward or punishment on clear grounds. Government employees at all levels, especially leading officials, must be devoted, diligent and responsible and serve the people wholeheartedly. They need to keep the overall picture in mind, be well disciplined, carry out administrative decrees promptly, and implement all laws, regulations, principles and policies to the letter. They need to work hard, be thrifty, and oppose waste and extravagance. They also need to be realistic and pragmatic in their approach to work, refrain from making empty promises, triumph over bureaucracy, formalism, deception and exaggeration, and fully carry out all tasks and assignments.

China is now standing at a new historical starting point as we march toward the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects. We must unite even closer around the Central Committee with Comrade Hu Jintao as General Secretary, hold high the great banner of Deng Xiaoping Theory and the important thought of Three Represents, pool the wisdom and strength of our 1.3 billion people, work diligently and confidently to achieve success, strive to make the great Eleventh Five-Year Plan into a bright reality, and write a new chapter in the history of our socialist modernization drive. No difficulties or obstacles can impede our progress. We must achieve our goals! And we definitely can achieve them!