Reflecting on the People's Livelihood Warmth in the Proposals for the 15th Five-Year Plan

A deep concern for the people’s livelihood is deeply etched into the land of China—

  During his first domestic inspection tour following the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party, General Secretary Xi Jinping departed from Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province, and traveled for more than three hours before arriving at Yanyang Town, Meixian District, Meizhou City.

  Why should you come here and take a look?

  When interacting with his fellow villagers, General Secretary Xi Jinping explained the reason behind his concern: “This is a land steeped in red history. As Guangdong stands at the forefront of reform and opening-up, there are still imbalances in its development—and that’s precisely what weighs heavily on my mind.”

  Chinese-style modernization is a modernization characterized by common prosperity for all the people. On the road to moderate prosperity, “not a single person should be left behind”; on the path to common prosperity, “not a single person should be left behind.”

  The “15th Five-Year Plan” proposals, reviewed and approved at the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party, prominently emphasize in their guiding principles that “all people will take solid steps toward common prosperity.”

  “This is a comprehensive requirement guiding economic and social development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period,” emphasized General Secretary Xi Jinping when explaining the planning proposals.

  Upholding the development philosophy centered on the people and intensifying efforts to safeguard and improve people’s livelihoods, we will ensure that the fruits of development benefit all people more widely and equitably, making the foundation of a happy life for our citizens even brighter.

  Take benefiting the people as the fundamental value orientation.

  In Chinese-style modernization, people’s livelihoods come first.

  General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: “We must uphold the principle of putting the people first and highlight the people-centered nature of modernization,” and “ensure that modernization better responds to the people’s diverse aspirations and multi-level needs.”

  Throughout every Five-Year Plan, the overarching theme of building our country into a modern socialist nation has remained consistent, and our original aspiration—to strive for the happiness of the people—has never wavered.

  China has already built the world’s largest education system, social security system, and healthcare system. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, more than 12 million new urban jobs will be created each year, average life expectancy will reach 79 years, and direct settlement of medical expenses across provincial boundaries will benefit 560 million person-times nationwide... By consistently ensuring and improving people’s livelihoods through development, we have achieved “two great miracles,” reflected in a prosperous and well-off society brimming with abundant resources and countless homes lit up with warm lights.

  There is no end to safeguarding and improving people’s livelihoods—there are only continuous new starting points. The 15th Five-Year Plan period is a critical phase for laying a solid foundation and making all-out efforts toward basically achieving socialist modernization. As people’s aspirations for a better life have generally shifted from “whether or not we have it” to “how good it is,” General Secretary Xi Jinping has been deeply mindful of and carefully planning how to proactively respond to the people’s new expectations for a better life—this has been his constant concern and far-sighted vision.

  “When it comes to matters that affect the people, what really counts is substance. All policies and measures must be practical and effective, and we must adhere to doing our utmost within our capabilities.”

  “We need to take more concrete and tangible measures to earnestly meet the people’s needs in areas such as employment, education, social security, housing, healthcare, elderly care, and childcare.”

  “We must remain true to our original aspiration, consider issues from the perspective of the people, consistently ensure and improve people’s livelihoods through development, and steadily advance toward common prosperity.”

  …………

  A close reading of the “14th Five-Year Plan” proposals reveals that the word “people” runs throughout—

  The guiding ideology for economic and social development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period—“taking the fundamental goal of meeting the people’s ever-growing needs for a better life”—is included therein.

  “Putting the people first” is one of the guiding principles that must be followed for economic and social development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period.

  “Continuously improving the quality of people’s lives” is one of the primary goals for economic and social development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period.

  Deploy strategic tasks and major initiatives for the 15th Five-Year Plan period by specific sectors, and separately highlight the goal of “intensifying efforts to safeguard and improve people’s livelihoods and steadily advancing common prosperity for all people.” Firmly grasp the objective requirements of common prosperity, and around the theme of safeguarding and improving people’s livelihoods, deploy a series of balanced and highly accessible policy measures aimed at promoting high-quality and full employment and perfecting the income distribution system.

  …………

  There is a time-honored principle in governing a country: putting the people’s well-being first. In the proposals for the 14th Five-Year Plan, these goal-oriented initiatives that touch upon people’s daily lives represent commitments of immense weight and significance. By taking the pursuit of the people’s happiness as our fundamental value orientation, staying firmly focused on our goals, and continuing to strive forward, the people will increasingly experience a greater sense of gain, happiness, and security.

  Gather the wisdom and strength of all the people.

  “We must carry out multi-level and multi-channel publicity and training to guide cadres and the general public to truly align their thinking and actions with the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee, further enhancing consensus, bolstering confidence, and boosting morale,” General Secretary Xi Jinping recently emphasized during his inspection tour in Guangdong, putting forward clear requirements for studying, publicizing, and implementing the spirit of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee.

  Chinese-style modernization is a cause that belongs to the hundreds of millions of people themselves. Only by closely relying on the people, respecting their spirit of creativity, and pooling the wisdom and strength of all the people can we continuously advance Chinese-style modernization.

  What the people hope for is precisely what the government strives to achieve. The drafting of the “15th Five-Year Plan” proposals represents another vivid practice of promoting intra-party democracy and whole-process people’s democracy.

  General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: “We must adhere to scientific decision-making, democratic decision-making, and decision-making based on the rule of law. We should integrate top-level design with soliciting public input, strengthen research and argumentation, broadly build consensus, listen to the opinions and suggestions of the people and all sectors of society through various channels, and fully draw on the fresh experiences created by cadres and the masses in practice.”

  Open the door to seek advice and pool wisdom and strength—

  On April 30, General Secretary Xi Jinping chaired a symposium in Shanghai on economic and social development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period, listening firsthand to the views and suggestions of leading officials from seven provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities.

  From May to June, entrusted by General Secretary Xi Jinping, central leaders successively chaired three symposiums to hear the views of representatives from the economic, scientific and technological, and grassroots communities.

  Entrust relevant departments, institutions, and think tanks to conduct research on 35 key topics addressing major issues in economic and social development; solicit opinions and suggestions from various localities and departments, and listen to the views and suggestions of non-Party members...

  “Optimize the policy for enrolling children of migrant workers in nearby schools,” “Promote full coverage of occupational injury protection for newly employed workers,” “Bring traditional culture into campuses”... From May 20 to June 20, during the online public consultation phase for the formulation of the 15th Five-Year Plan, a broad spectrum of internet users enthusiastically participated, submitting over 3.113 million suggestions and proposals. After careful sorting and selection, these submissions were distilled into more than 1,500 constructive and representative pieces of advice covering 27 different areas.

  Time and again, in-depth grassroots surveys, candid and open-hearted symposiums, and countless suggestions that pool the wisdom of the people—each of these efforts allows the tiny streams of public opinion to converge into the grand blueprint for national development.

  Development makes sense only when it is for the people; development gains momentum only when it relies on the people. Relying closely on the people is not only an important approach in drafting the proposals for the 15th Five-Year Plan, but also an intrinsic requirement for achieving the development goals and tasks of the 15th Five-Year Plan.

  “The level of institutionalization, standardization, and proceduralization of whole-process people’s democracy has been further enhanced,” and this has been included as a key objective for economic and social development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. The proposal for the 15th Five-Year Plan also emphasizes: “Improving mechanisms for absorbing public opinion and pooling collective wisdom.”

  From “grassroots legislative contact points” to “small courtyard deliberation halls,” from democratic symposiums and public hearings to joint community visits by Party representatives, NPC deputies, and CPPCC members, and from offline “roundtable meetings” to online “deliberation groups”... throughout the entire process, people’s democracy is brimming with vitality at the grassroots level, and the people’s “golden ideas” are continuously transformed into “golden fruits” of development.

  The people are the creators of history. On the path forward, by further unleashing the enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity of hundreds of millions of people, Chinese-style modernization will surely possess the most reliable, profound, and enduring source of strength.

  Solidly advance common prosperity for all the people.

  What changes will our lives bring?

  Surrounded by green hills and adorned with blue bricks and dark-tiled roofs, at the entrance of the Nian Gao Tea House in Waitongwu Village, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, several bamboo chairs are arranged in a circle, where villagers, grassroots lecturers, and members of the Central Lecture Group—charged with studying and implementing the spirit of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee—gather to engage in lively discussions and exchanges.

  “How can small-scale rural makers like us go further?”

  “Promoting two-way flow of factors between urban and rural areas and encouraging various types of talent to go to the countryside to provide services, start businesses, and find employment represents a major policy benefit. You can combine your entrepreneurial endeavors with the development of the village collective, working together to grow stronger and bigger.”

  In the exchange of questions and answers, the nation’s development plans resonate in harmony with the personal destinies of its people.

  Studying the proposals for the 15th Five-Year Plan, we’re talking about “top-level matters” yet focusing on “grassroots concerns.” By steadily advancing common prosperity for all the people, we’re painting a vivid picture of a happy life for everyone.

  Strengthen efforts to safeguard and improve people's livelihoods—

  Taking “establishing and improving a system for protecting workers against occupational injuries” as an example, the targeted measures outlined in the 15th Five-Year Plan further strengthen and solidify the safety net for workers in new forms of employment.

  In the past, new employment groups such as delivery couriers, online ride-hailing delivery workers, and ride-hailing drivers often found themselves with no recourse when suffering occupational injuries, as their labor relationships were difficult to establish.

  Since 2022, seven provinces and seven platform enterprises have launched pilot programs for occupational injury protection. Today, the scope of these pilots has expanded to 17 provinces, covering more than 20 million workers in new forms of employment. We remain steadfast in doing a good job with this important initiative, ensuring that the newly employed group can enjoy “stable and secure happiness.”

  Implementing the plan to increase incomes for urban and rural residents, steadily expanding the scope of free education, and building “good homes” that are safe, comfortable, green, and smart—each of these measures is designed to address the urgent, difficult, and pressing concerns of the people, thereby promoting greater well-being and improving the quality of life for all.

  Focusing on narrowing regional disparities and urban-rural differences—

  The “15th Five-Year Plan” period is the first five-year phase following the transition period during which we have consolidated and expanded upon the achievements of poverty alleviation and effectively linked them with rural revitalization. After the transition period, how can we promote sustained, regular assistance? The “15th Five-Year Plan” proposals explicitly state: “We will coordinate and establish a regular mechanism for preventing people from falling back into or into poverty.”

  Enhance the effectiveness of the monitoring system for preventing relapse into and falling into poverty, implement targeted and categorized assistance, support less-developed regions in accelerating their development, and stabilize, optimize, and improve the mechanisms, systems, and policy frameworks for assistance... By carefully planning and meticulously deploying these key initiatives, our goal is to ensure that people across the board lead increasingly prosperous lives and jointly stride toward a bright future of Chinese-style modernization.

  Promote the common prosperity of people’s spiritual lives—

  Farmers are going viral online for composing poetry on field ridges; delivery drivers have penned “The People in a Hurry”; amateur actors are taking to the stage at “Village Galas”; and everyday creators are sharing their lives through short videos... In this era, everyone is a creator, everyone is a sharer, and everyone is an appreciator.

  As the times surge forward, humanistic endeavors are constantly renewed. The proposal for the 15th Five-Year Plan puts forward: “Prosper new mass literature and art under the conditions of a thriving internet.” With broad participation from ordinary people in cultural creation, new mass literature and art will surely open up a more diverse development landscape and become a vibrant force driving the prosperity of socialist literature and art.

  The essence of modernization lies in the modernization of people, and its ultimate goal is to achieve the free and comprehensive development of human beings. The smiling faces of the people will be the most moving testament to our progress; the happiness of the people will be the warmest footnote to modernization. (Reporters: Zhao Cheng, He Zhaoyu)

[Editor-in-charge: Wang Mengmeng]