II. Achievements in the 14th Five-Year Plan Period and Major Objectives and Tasks for the 15th Five-Year Plan Period

The 14th Five-Year Plan period has been truly extraordinary. We have followed the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and adhered to the directives of General Secretary Xi Jinping regarding Beijing's development. With consistent and tenacious efforts, we have withstood the severe shocks from the once-in-a-century Covid-19 pandemic, responded effectively to a raft of risks and challenges, and secured major progress in the city's endeavors on all fronts. Over the past five years, we have made resolute efforts to relocate functions not essential to Beijing's role as the capital. Urban and rural construction land has decreased by around 50 square kilometers. The city's GRP has been growing at an annual rate of 5.2%, successively crossing the four- and five-trillion-yuan thresholds. As Beijing shifts toward a growth model that reduces key inputs, we have charted a new path for the transformation and development of a super-large city, bringing the municipal 14th Five-Year Plan to a successful conclusion.

Over these five years, we have kept in mind the expectations placed upon us, carried out our work in strict accordance with the city's development blueprint, and enhanced Beijing's capacity to serve as the Four Centers. We significantly strengthened our ability to provide the Four Services. The spatial layout and working environment for the central authorities have been further improved. We presented the world with splendid Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, making Beijing the only city in the world that has hosted both the Summer and Winter Olympics. The BMC is now developing in full swing, and the relocation of municipal departments has been basically completed. We also contributed to the notable progress in the development of the Xiong'an New Area. We steadily advanced Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei coordinated development, achieving fresh breakthroughs in transport connectivity, joint ecological conservation, industrial integration, collaborative innovation, and coordinated public services.

Over these five years, we have stayed committed to reform and innovation, and achieved significant results in high-quality economic development. Scientific and technological innovation has become a stronger growth driver. We achieved fruitful outcomes in the pilot reforms for the Zhongguancun National Innovation Demonstration Zone and the development of the Two Zones. Our R&D intensity ranks among the highest globally, and we lead the country in the number of unicorn companies. The numbers of high-value invention patents per 10,000 people and little giant companies have both doubled from 2020 levels. We fostered three trillion-yuan industrial clusters and seven hundred-billion-yuan industrial clusters. Our economy now enjoys stronger internal growth momentum.

Over these five years, we have ensured vibrant and sustained cultural development, continuously enhancing our cultural soft power and appeal. After 12 years of efforts, the Beijing Central Axis was successfully inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, and Beijing now ranks first worldwide in the number of UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Sites. Solid steps were taken to advance the development of the Grand Canal Cultural Belt, the Great Wall Cultural Belt, and the Western Hills-Yongding River Cultural Belt. We made significant progress in establishing Beijing as a capital of performing arts, a city of museums, and a city of readers. Beijing ranks first nationwide in the number of winners for both the national Best Works Awards and the National Qunxing Awards. Our citizens enjoy richer and more vibrant intellectual and cultural lives.

Over these five years, through systematic governance and sustained efforts, we have made green development a more prominent feature of the capital. The annual average concentration of PM2.5 has remained within the applicable national ambient air quality standards for five consecutive years. "Beijing blue" has become the new normal. All the five major rivers resumed full flow into the sea, and the quality of aquatic environments was enhanced significantly. The new round of one-million-mu (66,667 hectares) afforestation project was completed above target. Beijing has become a municipality-wide National Forest City, and the total number of parks reached 1,136. The effort to transform Beijing into a garden city has been advanced across the board. Beijing is recognized as one of the global Biodiversity Charming Cities under the United Nations framework.

Over these five years, we have followed a people-centered approach and implemented targeted policies to deliver more benefits of modernization to our people. Over 80% of our fiscal spending was directed to areas vital to public wellbeing, and cumulative tax and fee reductions for market entities exceeded 490 billion yuan. We have seen continued progress in coordinated development between urban and rural areas and among different regions. Rural incomes have grown faster than urban incomes for eight consecutive years. City governance transitioned toward a new model driven by the Swift Response to Public Complaints mechanism, and our capacity to deliver smart and efficient governance continued to strengthen. We improved elderly and childcare services. Average life expectancy increased from 82.4 years in 2020 to 83.9 years. Improvements in people's wellbeing are felt in more tangible and accessible ways.

The 15th Five-Year Plan period marks a pivotal stage for consolidating foundations and advancing toward basically achieving socialist modernization by 2035. During this period, there will be strategic opportunities as well as risks and challenges. Fulfilling the capital's responsibilities as the country's Four Centers and providing the Four Services will generate internal momentum for Beijing's further development, while advancing the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei coordinated development will create new opportunities. Technological innovation has become a powerful growth engine, and reform and opening up continue to yield new dividends. Together, these factors offer broad and promising prospects for the capital's development in the new era. We must maintain strategic resolve and enhance our confidence in success, respond to external challenges by bolstering our internal capabilities, and continually open up new horizons for the city's endeavors on all fronts.

In accordance with the Recommendations of the Beijing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China for Formulating Beijing's 15th Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development, we have formulated the draft Outline for Beijing's 15th Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development. It is submitted to this session for your deliberation and approval. I will now provide a briefing.

In the drafting process, we adhered to the following principles:

First, ensuring consistency with the established blueprint. The draft Outline complies with the requirements for implementing General Secretary Xi's directives on Beijing's development and is consistent with the key tasks set out by the CPC Central Committee. Faithfully implementing the Master Plan of Development for Beijing (2016-2035) and the recommendations of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee, we have adopted a well-calibrated approach to setting development objectives. We have also carried out systematic planning for major projects, key reforms, and policy measures. All these efforts aimed at translating the road map approved by the CPC Central Committee and Beijing Municipal Committee into an actionable delivery plan.

Second, focusing on our mandates and missions. The draft Outline is centered on our vision for the capital and the pathways to realize it. Bearing in mind Beijing's role as the national capital, we will uphold the highest standards in our work to better meet the priority needs of our Party and country as well as our people's aspirations for a better life. 

Third, being both goal-oriented and problem-oriented. We aim to lead the nation in achieving decisive progress toward basically realizing socialist modernization in the 15th Five-Year Plan period. To this end, the draft Outline focuses on shoring up areas of weakness in our modernization drive. We have made targeted planning to ensure that our measures are sound, precise, robust, and effective.

We have set out in the draft Outline specific objectives for development over the next five years: first, further strengthen Beijing's role as the national capital; second, take high-quality development to new heights; third, achieve new breakthroughs in comprehensively deepening reform; fourth, ensure continued improvements in quality of life; fifth, significantly enhance the cultural appeal of the capital; sixth, achieve greater progress in building a Beautiful Beijing; seventh, make Beijing safer in all respects. Building on these goals, and with sustained efforts for another five years, we aim to make significant strides by 2035 in capital service capability, overall economic strength, innovation capacity, governance, and international influence. We will have more balanced development between urban and rural areas and across the city, ensure better, happier lives for our people, and lead the nation in basically realizing socialist modernization. 

Centered on these objectives, we have established 29 major indicators across six dimensions, namely innovation-driven development, coordinated development, green development, an open economy, shared development, and safety and security. The indicators include: annual GRP growth at 4.5% to 5% while striving for even better results; labor productivity of around 580,000 yuan per worker; citywide total R&D expenditure exceeding 6% of GRP; annual GRP growth in the BMC and the flatland new town area surpassing 5%; annual growth of trade in services at around 5%; surveyed urban unemployment rate kept within 5%; death from production safety accidents capped at 0.6 per ten billion yuan of GRP; and colorful eco-space index reaching 24.2%.

The draft Outline sets out 13 tasks: first, firmly ground our work in Beijing's roles and missions and provide full service and safeguards for the nation's political center; second, boost cultural development and enhance Beijing's appeal as the national cultural center; third, deepen external exchanges and bolster Beijing's position as the national center for international exchanges; fourth, pool efforts to foster innovation and scale up Beijing's capacity as an international center for innovation; fifth, strengthen coordinated regional development and advance the development of the pioneering demonstration zone for Chinese modernization; sixth, consolidate industrial foundations and accelerate the cultivation of new quality productive forces; seventh, expand domestic demand, and support and integrate into the country's new development pattern; eighth, deepen reform and opening up and build up momentum for high-quality development; ninth, ensure that the fruits of development are shared by the people and better meet their new expectations for a better life; tenth, foster more balanced development by advancing integrated urban-rural development and coordination across different parts of the city; eleventh, make meticulous efforts to enhance the governance of Beijing as a super-large city; twelfth, accelerate Beijing's green transition and advance the building of a Beautiful Beijing across the board; thirteenth, pursue development and security in tandem while safeguarding harmony and stability of the capital.

Looking ahead, we are confident in our ability to overcome the difficulties and obstacles before us, and to accomplish the objectives and tasks set out in the 15th Five-Year Plan, thereby taking the capital's development to new heights in the new era.

III. Major Tasks for 2026

This year is the first year for implementing the 15th Five-Year Plan. It is essential that we deliver strong performance across all areas of our work. To achieve this, we must:

· follow the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era;

· fully implement the guiding principles set out at the 20th CPC National Congress and the successive plenary sessions of the 20th CPC Central Committee;

· follow the guiding principles of the Central Economic Work Conference;

· adhere to the directives of General Secretary Xi Jinping regarding Beijing's development;

· fully and faithfully apply the new development philosophy on all fronts;

· actively contribute to and integrate into the new development pattern;

· advance high-quality development, uphold the general principle of pursuing progress while ensuring stability, and ensure both development and security;

· ensure that all our endeavors remain anchored in the capital's development in the new era and further promote Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei coordinated development;

· fully leverage Beijing's strengths in education, science, technology, and talent;

· continuously expand domestic demand and improve supply;

· optimize the allocation of new resources and make better use of existing ones;

· develop new quality productive forces at a faster pace;

· actively contribute to and integrate into the building of a unified national market;

· prevent and defuse risks in key sectors and stabilize employment, businesses, markets, and expectations;

· improve the quality of growth and appropriately increase output;

· maintain overall social harmony and stability in the capital;

· advance comprehensive and rigorous self-governance of the Party.

With these efforts, we aim to get the 15th Five-Year Plan off to a strong start.

The main targets for economic and social development this year are as follows:

· grow GRP by around 5%;

· increase general public budget revenue by around 4%;

· maintain the surveyed urban unemployment rate within 5%;

· keep CPI increase at around 2%;

· ensure that personal income growth aligns with economic growth;

· contain the annual average concentration of PM2.5 at around 29 μg/m3, while striving for even better performance where possible;

· meet national standards for energy, water, and carbon-emissions indicators