Decoding Xi's blueprint for a stronger China

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Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in 2012, China‘s annual GDP growth rate has remained above 6.5 percent despite a sluggish world economy; an average of over 13 million people have been lifted out of poverty every year; many deep-rooted problems and issues that were too difficult to be resolved before have been addressed; a nationwide anti-graft drive has gained crushing momentum with more than 280 senior officials investigated.

The past five years have been "extraordinary," with historic achievements made in reform and opening-up as well as socialist modernization, according to a communiqué issued on October 14 at the end of the Seventh Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, speaks at the Seventh Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, which was held from October 11 to 14 in Beijing. /Xinhua Photo

The extraordinary achievements have been made under the leadership of Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee. Decoding Xi's blueprint for China is essential to understanding the country's success and roadmap of national rejuvenation.

Guiding theories

Xi's blueprint for China is built on five sets of theories, including one dream, two centenary goals, "four comprehensives," a five-pronged overall approach, and five development concepts.

One Dream: Shortly after Xi took the helm of the CPC in November 2012, he put forward the concept of the Chinese Dream, or the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Two Centenary Goals: To make the dream come true, he put emphasis on China's "two centenary goals": completing the building of a moderately prosperous society by 2020, ahead of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the CPC the following year, and building a modernized socialist country by 2049, the centenary of the People's Republic of China.

2021 will mark the 100th anniversary of the founding of the CPC and 2049 will mark the centenary of the People's Republic of China. /Xinhua Photo

Four Comprehensives: In December 2014, Xi summarized that China should advance coordinated development of "four comprehensives," a four-pronged strategy that aims to comprehensively accomplish a moderately prosperous society, deepen reform, advance the rule of law, and strengthen Party governance.

Five-Pronged Overall Approach: Meanwhile, China has adopted an overall approach to promote economic, political, cultural, social and ecological progress, putting an end to the era of sacrificing the environment for economic growth.

Five Development Concepts: To encourage innovation-driven, balanced and sustainable development that is beneficial to all in a globalized world, China highlighted the five development concepts of innovation, coordination, green development, opening up, and sharing in its 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-2020).

Photo taken on July 29, 2017 shows heavily forested Chongli District of Zhangjiakou, north China's Hebei Province. The city has made lots of efforts in its ecological construction in recent years. /Xinhua Photo

As the communiqué said, the CPC Central Committee with Xi at the core has raised a series of new concepts, thoughts and strategies over the past five years. These grand ideas have been the foundation of a string of importance guidelines, policies and measures bringing changes to China.

Targeting China's problems

Nearly four decades after China kicked off its reform and opening-up, it has become the world's second largest economy, but its reform has also entered a "deep-water zone." Many of the easier reforms have been accomplished, leaving difficult tasks ahead. To realize the two centenary goals and the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation, the country needs to press forward with more complex reforms and make breakthroughs in many key areas.

With a clear awareness of the problems that China faces in its course of development, Xi is determined to tackle them and deepen reforms, said Han Qingxiang, deputy education director of the Party School of the CPC Central Committee.

China's anti-graft drive has gained crushing momentum since 2012. /Xinhua Photo

In a commentary published on GMW.cn in February 2016, Han said Xi had shown his awareness of China's problems in every aspect of national governance. For example, Xi calls for coordinated development of the "four comprehensives," aiming to strengthen society's weak links, address China's institutional drawbacks and tear down the fence of entrenched interests, tackle the country's problems with an improved justice system, and fight corruption and overcome formalism, bureaucratism, hedonism and extravagance among Party officials.

While tackling China's problems, Xi is also committed to building a new order for the country's social development today, Han suggested. The new order features social values based on fairness and justice, reform of the distribution system and cadre and personnel system, balanced and coordinated economic and social development, coordination of the roles of the government, the market and the people, as well as the rule of law supported by the rule of virtue, according to Han.

Comprehensively deepening reforms

"The Chinese Dream is, after all, a dream of the people," Xi said in a speech during his visit to the United States in September 2015. "We can fulfill the Chinese Dream only when we link it with our people's yearning for a better life."

Led by the CPC Central Committee with Xi at the core, China's reform drive is focused on boosting people's "sense of gain" and building a modernized and stronger nation. The country is implementing a comprehensive reform package covering 60 tasks and over 300 reform measures announced after the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee in November 2013.

China is deepening supply-side structural reform in agriculture. /Xinhua Photo

The Decision on Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening Reforms adopted at the close of the session made it clear that "decisive results" should be obtained in key areas by 2020.

The areas of reform include:

(1) Improving the basic economic system,

(2) Building a modern market system,

(3) Shifting the government role and building a service-type government,

(4) Reforming the fiscal and tax system,

(5) Coordinating urban-rural development,

(6) Facilitating further opening-up,

(7) Improving the political system,

(8) Upholding the rule of law,

(9) Strengthening the supervision of power,

(10) Upgrading the cultural system,

(11) Improving social services,

(12) Making innovations in social governance,

(13) Protecting the ecological system,

(14) Deepening defense and military reform,

(15) Strengthening and improving the CPC's leadership.

China launches its first domestically-built aircraft carrier in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province, April 26, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

Among them, the reform of the economic system is the focus and the market should play a decisive role in resource allocation, the document says.

A Central Leading Group for Deepening Overall Reform headed by Xi was set up at the end of 2013 to lead the work to comprehensively deepen reforms. The group held 38 meetings and reviewed 277 documents during the past 45 months.

In 2014, 80 key reform tasks were completed, 370 reform plans were made; in 2015, 101 key reform tasks were completed, 415 reform plans were made; in 2016, 97 key reform tasks were completed, 419 reform plans were made, and frameworks for reform in major sectors were drawn up; in 2017, 69 documents were reviewed at seven meetings of the group.

"Reforms are always in the present tense, not the past tense," Xi has said. The 19th CPC National Congress is expected to turn a new page in China's reform drive.