BEIJING -- The State Council, or the central government, announced on Wednesday that it will boost the development of the nation's distribution industry with the goal of establishing a modern goods distribution system that is efficient, competitive and open.

The process of speeding up the sector's development should be oriented toward providing greater convenience and boosting public consumption, as well as ensuring the quality of products and improving efficiency in the sector, according to a statement released after an executive meeting of the State Council presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao.

The distribution industry includes multiple sub-sectors, including wholesale, retail and logistics.

The statement said the country will construct major distribution networks, optimize the structure of the sector in urban regions and increase the number of service branches in rural areas so that farm produce and industrial goods can move smoothly between cities and the countryside.

Innovation should be pushed forward in creating new mechanisms that can integrate the production and sale of farm produce, the statement said.

The government will also support the construction and renovation of related infrastructure, according to the statement.

It added that the government will encourage private investment in distribution, as well as more work to remove regional protectionism in the sector.

Authorities will also work to bring down costs by regulating fees for the transportation of farm produce and eliminating other improper fees.

The executive meeting also approved a plan for saving energy and reducing emissions between now and 2015, with a goal of bringing energy consumption per unit of economic output down by 16 percent by 2015 compared to the 2010 level.

Meanwhile, total emissions of carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide will drop 8 percent, with emissions of nitrogen oxide expected to drop 10 percent by 2015 compared to the 2010 level, according to the statement.

To achieve these goals, the country will constrain the development of highly-polluting industries and those that produce high levels of emissions, as well as speed up the elimination of outdated production capacities, according to the statement.

The country will carry out energy-saving campaigns in multiple industries and public institutions. Pollution prevention and treatment will also be stepped up in other industries, the statement said.