Box 8: Measures to Promote Development of the Digital Economy

Sound Policies and Institutions	Ÿ Formulate a development plan for the digital economy during the 14th Five-Year Plan period Ÿ Introduce policies for promoting “Internet Plus” in the new era Ÿ Strengthen guidance on the integration of the digital economy and the real economy, and further mobilize public enthusiasm
Realizing the Value of Data	Ÿ Establish basic systems and standards and norms for the ownership rights, trade, and flow of data, and advance the role of data as a new factor of production Ÿ Promote the marketization reform of data and encourage its safe and efficient usage Ÿ Create a robust coordination mechanism for the sharing of data, push ahead with effective data sharing, and promote more fluid and precise administrative data sharing
Digital Transformation of Industry	Ÿ Formulate a plan for the smart, green, and digital transformation of industry, promote the innovative development of the industrial internet, and drive the development of advanced manufacturing clusters Ÿ Boost the development of e-commerce in a digital, smart, and online-based manner Ÿ Support the nationwide construction of centers for promoting digital transformation
Development of Digital Industry	Ÿ Vigorously develop new industries and new types of business such as artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing, and blockchain Ÿ Foster a fair and ordered development environment, and promote online and offline integrated development Ÿ Guide the healthy and orderly development of the sharing and platform economies
Coordinated Progress in Pilot and Demonstration Projects	Ÿ Review the results of the digital transformation partnership initiatives, organize a new round of initiatives, and work to resolve outstanding problems hindering digitalization Ÿ Develop pilot zones for the innovative development of the digital economy and spread useful practices and approaches for developing the digital economy
International Cooperation	Ÿ Promote the building of a Digital Silk Road, develop new partners in the digital sphere, and support and encourage international cooperation with regard to smart cities, e-commerce, and other areas of the digital economy Ÿ Actively participate in the establishment of international norms such as taxation principles for data security, digital currencies, and the digital economy

 

4) We will enhance self-reliance in industrial and supply chains.

We will promote greater synergy between industry, academia, research, and application, while supporting enterprises to take the lead in establishing innovation consortia and undertaking major national science and technology projects.

We will coordinate efforts to shore up areas of weakness and to consolidate our strengths, and launch an initiative to bolster manufacturing industrial and supply chains. We will intensify research on key technologies to strengthen weak links and resolve bottlenecks in certain areas.

We will rebuild our industrial foundations and improve innovation with regard to key basic materials, basic spare parts and components, advanced fundamental techniques, basic industrial technologies, and basic industrial software.

We will implement the plan for the strengthening of partners across industrial chains. We will strengthen top-level design and get applications and overall systems to lead research and advances. We will strengthen the supply of generic technologies and carry out initiatives to improve overall quality.

We will step up international cooperation with regard to industrial security. We will advance the building of an international platform for cooperation regarding industrial and supply chains, and work to increase the stability and diversification of global production chains.

3. Executing the strategy of expanding domestic demand and accelerating the creation of a strong domestic market

We must pursue with dedication supply-side structural reform as our main task while at the same time paying close attention to demand-side management, so as to achieve a more desirable dynamic balance between supply and demand that allows each to boost the other.

1) We will stimulate domestic consumer spending.

We will improve the pay rise mechanism and increase the buying power of consumers. We will abolish, in an orderly manner, administrative regulations that restrict consumer spending, promote a shift from regulating the purchase of consumer goods like motor vehicles to regulating their use, and abolish excessive restrictions on sales of second-hand vehicles. We will increase the market share of new-energy vehicles, build more car parks and electric vehicle battery charging and swapping facilities, and develop the system for recycling power batteries at a faster pace. We will encourage the purchase of automobiles in rural areas and the replacement of old vehicles, old home appliances, and old furniture with new purchases. We will stimulate spending on home renovation.

We will work to boost the consumption of services in areas such as healthcare, culture, tourism, and sports. We will encourage faster development of new forms and models of consumer spending, such as online diagnosis and treatment, online teaching, in vitro diagnostics, remote work, general aviation, and smart sports. We will propel the growth of both online and offline consumption. We will encourage platform companies to reduce their service fees as appropriate.

We will fully tap into the consumption potential of county and township residents, strive to enhance the availability and quality of e-commerce and express delivery services in rural areas, and modernize the distribution of agricultural products. We will work to facilitate the flow of industrial goods to rural areas and the flow of farm produce to cities, strengthen weak links in cold-chain logistics facilities for agricultural products, and build supply chains that link farmers to markets. We will encourage the branding, standardization, and digital and industrial transformation of rural products and services, and encourage urban residents to spend more in rural areas.

We will improve mechanisms for promoting broader use of energy-efficient and environmentally friendly products, and increase the market share of green products. We will develop major international consumer cities and regional consumer centers. We will move forward with the high-quality upgrading of pedestrian streets. With the focus on developing a sound credit system, we will strengthen protection of consumer rights and interests and create a favorable environment for consumption.

2) We will enhance the sustainability of growth in investment.

Acting on the principle that funding and other production factors should follow specific projects, which should follow specific plans, we will expedite the implementation of major national projects of strategic importance, and ensure the provision of funds, land, and other factors for major projects.

We will allocate 610 billion yuan from the central government budget, an increase of 10 billion yuan over that of the previous year, giving full play to the guiding and catalytic role of these funds in areas that generate considerable spillover and social benefits. This year, 3.65 trillion yuan of local government special bonds will be issued. The scope of use for such bonds will be expanded as appropriate, with priority given to funding for key projects already under construction. We will encourage the whole of society to make investments and create a market-driven, self-generating investment mechanism.

We will advance the reform of the investment approval system and carry out law enforcement inspections in the field of investment, while also stepping up the development and application of online platforms.

We will increase investment in new types of infrastructure and formulate plans for the development of 5G networks, data centers, basic software, and space infrastructure. We will support the construction of urban flood prevention and drainage facilities and strengthen flood control in urban areas. We will steadily move forward with the construction of the Sichuan-Tibet railway, new land-sea transit routes for the western region, and other major projects. We will improve the distribution of airports, speed up the preliminary work for a new channel for the Three Georges water transportation hub, implement national water and waterway network projects, and advance major energy projects such as oil, gas, and electricity in an orderly manner.

We will prudently carry out REITs trials in infrastructure to put idle assets to use and to create a positive investment cycle. We will standardize and promote the public-private partnership (PPP) model and attract more private capital.

3) We will accelerate the development of a modern distribution system.

We will speed up the development of hardware and software for the distribution system, upgrade infrastructure networks, develop new technologies, business forms, and models, and improve related regulations and standards, with a view to forming a unified national market.

We will continue strengthening the development of major logistics infrastructure such as national logistics hubs and national backbone cold-chain logistics centers, carry out initiatives to promote the high-quality development of commodity logistics, and develop a modern logistics system.

We will build on the progress that has already been made in cutting logistics taxes and fees, improve trunk railway and waterway logistics routes, optimize the freight transportation structure, and actively develop multimodal transportation and smart logistics. We will also move forward more rapidly with the project to roll out express delivery services in rural areas.

We will develop and strengthen modern logistics enterprises, strengthen capacity building in international aviation freight transportation, and expand global logistics service networks. We will create a safe and reliable supply chain system of modern international logistics and develop a system for both online and offline tracing of major products.

4. Advancing reform in key sectors and links and promoting better interplay between an efficient market and a capable government

In order to resolve prominent problems affecting development, we will make reforms more strategic, forward-looking, and targeted, so that they are better able to meet the needs of development and the expectations of primary-level organizations, and thus better able to win popular support.

1) We will work faster to develop a market system with high standards.

We will put into effect the action plan for developing a high-standard market system. We will release the revised Negative List for Market Access (2021) and improve and maintain the “national unified list” management model. We will carry out market entry efficiency evaluations, expedite trials for easing market access, and introduce special measures to lift restrictions on market access in Hainan, Shenzhen, and other areas.

We will improve the competition policy framework and the fair competition review mechanism, strengthen law enforcement in relation to monopolies and unfair competition, guard against disordered capital expansion, and strive to create a fair and impartial environment in which all market entities are treated as equals and engage in fair competition.

We will conduct experiments on holistic reform of the market-based allocation of production factors, and push forward institution building for factor markets. We will carry out reform and innovation trials of public bidding, and intensify efforts to overhaul local regulations and rules in this area. We will further the reform of the land administration system, actively explore the implementation of the system for marketing rural collective land designated for business-related construction, encourage appropriate changes in the industrial purposes of land, and establish a sound mechanism for evaluating land use approval by provincial people’s governments.

We will open up social mobility channels for talent and for the labor force as a whole, and further the reform of personnel assessment, vocational qualification and professional title evaluation, and other personnel management systems. We will also improve the system of multi-tiered capital markets.

We will strengthen property protection, and particularly intellectual property protection. We will improve the system of property rights over scientific and technological outputs produced on the job, advance the reform of the rights to use, dispose of, and profit from scientific and technological advances, and continue with the trials of granting researchers property or permanent use rights over scientific and technological outputs produced on the job. We will establish agencies for trading intellectual property rights and scientific and technological output property rights.

We will formulate and release guidelines for the development of data markets, formulate standards for safe online data processing and other national standards, and launch a data security law and a personal information protection law.      

2) We will further transform the functions of government.

We will continue to develop a more market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized business environment. We will practice list-based management for all items requiring administrative approval. We will advance the reform for separating operating permits from business licenses, and devote major efforts to reducing preconditions, procedures, documents, and time required in the review and approval of enterprises’ applications.

The system for deregistering MSMEs with simplified procedures will be improved. We will reform the system of market access for industrial products, and advance reform of the entire management process, from production access to marketing, for the automobile, electronic, and electric appliances industries.

We will work to make government approval for every stage of a construction project procedure-based, and further cut and regulate the items and conditions required for such approval.

We will deepen the reform of industry associations and chambers of commerce. We will improve the new, credit-based regulatory mechanism, and further refine the mechanism of joint incentives for acts of good faith and joint punishment for acts of bad faith. We will establish a sharing and integration mechanism for public credit information and financial information, improve the national credit-based comprehensive loan service platform, and expand the volume of credit loans. We will introduce the credibility commitments system nationwide, and put the development of the social credit system on a more solid legal footing.

We will work to make government services more standardized, procedure-based, and accessible, set up a sound coordination mechanism for sharing government data, expand the application and promote the mutual accreditation of electronic licenses and certificates nationwide, and ensure more government services are accessible online and via cellphone apps and require only one application process.

We will shorten the time needed for starting a business. We will support provincial governments in piloting separate registration of corporate domiciles and places of operations. We will achieve full-process online trading of public resources across the country. We will further improve the mechanism for assessing China’s business environment, conduct business environment assessment and dynamic monitoring, and compile and release the 2021 China business environment report.

3) We will reduce enterprises’ production and operating costs through reform.

We will advance the reform of basic industries like energy, transportation, and telecommunications to make service provision more efficient and reduce charges. All manufacturing enterprises will be allowed to engage in market-based electricity transactions. Further steps will be taken to cut unjustified surcharges on electricity use, with further reductions in the electricity rates for general industrial and commercial businesses.

Average rates for broadband and dedicated internet access services for SMEs will be lowered by a further 10%. We will introduce differentiated pricing at expressway tolls for freight transportation vehicles for different times of day and different sections of road. The port development fee will be abolished. Airlines’ contributions to the civil aviation development fund will be cut by a further 20%.

Governments in localities that were strongly impacted by Covid-19 will be encouraged to lower or waive rentals on state-owned property for micro and small businesses in the service sector and for self-employed individuals. Various intermediary agencies will be urged to make public their terms of service, procedures, timeframes, and charges. Unjustified growth in non-tax government revenue will be strictly checked, and tough steps will be taken to end arbitrary charges, fines, and quotas.

4) We will strive to boost the vitality of market entities.

We will continue with the three-year action plan for SOE reform, accelerate the improved distribution and structural adjustment of the state-owned sector, both vigorously and prudently advance the mixed ownership reform of SOEs, and improve the state-owned assets oversight system that focuses on state capital.

We will foster a cordial and clean relationship between government and business, provide equal protection of the property rights of private businesses and the rights and interests of entrepreneurs in accordance with law, and nurture an entrepreneurial spirit. We will move faster to develop world-class enterprises, increase the ability of SMEs to innovate and to raise their professional competence, and develop a group of SMEs that apply special, sophisticated techniques to produce unique and novel products.

We will strengthen inclusive financial services for micro and small businesses, enforce regulations on ensuring payments owed to SMEs, and protect the lawful rights and interests of MSMEs.

We will push forward market-based reforms in the competitive areas of energy, railway, telecommunications, and other industries, and intensify reform of the regulatory system for natural monopoly businesses. We will work faster to develop a national unified electricity market, and carry out comprehensive trials for market-based railway reform.

5) We will further the reform of the fiscal, financial, and pricing systems.

We will improve the budget management system, strengthen budget constraints and performance management, promote greater budget transparency, and streamline the procedures for accessing preferential tax and fee policies. The reform plan for defining the respective fiscal powers and expenditure responsibilities of central and local governments will be implemented. We will move forward more rapidly with the collection of excise tax further downstream in the production-to-consumption process, and steadily hand over the collection of this tax to local governments.

We will modernize the central bank system, improve the mechanism for regulating the money supply, and prudently advance R&D on digital currencies. We will ensure financial institutions improve their corporate governance, continue the reform of state-owned commercial banks, support the sustained and healthy growth of small and medium banks and of rural credit cooperatives, and reform and improve policy-backed finance. We will increase the proportion of direct financing. We will steadily push forward the reform to introduce the registration-based IPO system to the main board and new third board, improve delisting as a normal practice, improve the overall quality of listed companies, and promote the healthy development of capital markets.

We will push further ahead with price reforms in energy, resources, and other key sectors, and strengthen oversight and review of costs in sectors in which monopolies exist. We will continue with the reform of electricity prices, develop a sound pricing mechanism for the pipeline transmission of oil and gas, and actively advance the price reform of water resources.

5. Promoting high-standard opening up and developing new institutions for a higher-level open economy

We will promote the liberalization and facilitation of trade and investment, and enhance international cooperation for mutual benefit by leveraging the strengths of China’s huge market.

1) We will stabilize the overall performance of foreign trade and foreign investment.

We will provide more policy support for foreign trade to maintain the volume of trade and to instill confidence in market entities. We will advance the innovative development of trade, while optimizing the structure of domestic markets and better positioning ourselves on the international market. We will improve the commodity mix, the ways of conducting trade, and the quality of exports, and increase imports of high-quality products.

We will enforce to the letter the Foreign Investment Law along with the regulations for its implementation in order to protect the legitimate rights and interests of foreign investors, and improve the management system of pre-establishment national treatment plus a negative list as well as the system for conducting national security reviews of foreign investments. We will further reduce the items on the negative list for foreign investment and implement the 2020 catalog of industries for foreign investment, and encourage foreign companies to invest in advanced manufacturing, in new and high technologies, in the energy conservation and environmental protection industries, and in the central and western regions.

We will improve the supporting system for the use of the RMB, and expand the bidirectional, high-quality opening up of the financial market.

2) We will promote the high-quality development of the BRI.

We will act on the principle of achieving shared growth through consultation and collaboration, promote green, open, and clean values, and increase pragmatic cooperation.

We will ensure sound Covid-19 control with regard to overseas projects, and advance the development of the healthy, green, and digital Silk Road initiatives. We will work to improve the quality and performance of outward investment, and promote the sound development of funds for outward investment and financing.

We will look to strengthen coordination with key countries and regions with regard to development plans to increase cooperation on production capacity. We will move forward with the orderly development of overseas economic and trade cooperation zones. We will push ahead with railway, port, energy and other major projects aimed at enhancing connectivity, develop the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to a high standard, and advance the China-Mongolia-Russia economic corridor and other major projects in a steady and orderly manner. We will broaden third-party market cooperation with the European Union, Singapore, the Republic of Korea, and Japan, and sign agreements with relevant countries on major third-party market cooperation projects. We will also continue to cooperate with international organizations on the BRI.

We will take proactive measures to prevent and respond to risks, and effectively protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises with regard to their outward investments and overseas operations.

We will expand cooperation on the Silk Road E-Commerce initiative. With regard to the China-Europe freight train services, we will work to achieve an increase in transport capacity, advance the construction of transportation hubs, expand port capacity, build overseas warehouses, move forward with the demonstration projects for assembly centers, and look to further develop inter-governmental cooperation mechanisms. We will work with Singapore on a cooperation plan for building the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, and connect this corridor to the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation framework.

We will develop Xinjiang and Fujian into core regions of the BRI by focusing on the unique strengths of each region, and further integrate regional development strategies such as the Yangtze Economic Belt with BRI projects. We will ensure that the narrative of international cooperation on the BRI reaches a wider audience.

3) We will speed up the development of pacesetters for opening up.

We will give pilot free trade zones greater decision-making power over reform, and ensure the implementation of pilot reforms, so as to achieve more institutional innovation results that can be replicated and applied in other areas. We will promote the integrated development of special customs regulation zones and pilot free trade zones.

We will make steady progress in developing the Hainan Free Trade Port, ensure that preliminary policies and plans are carried out, press ahead with legislation on the port, and develop Hainan into an international tourism and shopping destination.

We will make further progress in the development and opening up of border areas, and support their establishment of key experimental development and opening up zones.

We will step up trials for innovative development of trade in services, and ensure that more cities become trendsetters in providing outsourcing services for foreign clients.

4) We will actively participate in global economic governance.

China will continue to safeguard the multilateral trade system, support the G20 in enhancing international economic cooperation, actively participate in the reform of the World Trade Organization, and promote reform of the global financial system.

We will implement the strategy of upgrading free trade zones, and build a globally-oriented network of high-standard zones. We will work for the early entry into force and implementation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, sign and implement the China-EU Comprehensive Agreement on Investment, accelerate China’s free trade negotiations with Japan and the Republic of Korea, and provide greater support to the African Continental Free Trade Area. We will actively consider joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

6. Stepping up rural revitalization in all areas and steadily promoting the modernization of agriculture and rural areas

We will consolidate our achievements in poverty alleviation, prioritize the development of agriculture and rural areas, and plan and advance agricultural and rural modernization in a coordinated way.

1) We will combine consolidating and building on our achievements in poverty alleviation with the revitalization of rural areas.

For counties lifted out of poverty, a five-year transition period will apply to them from the time when poverty was eradicated there, during which major assistance policies for them will remain unchanged. We will improve our monitoring and assistance mechanisms to prevent people from falling back into poverty, so that we can identify problems among the target population and provide timely assistance. We will ensure follow-up support for people who have relocated from inhospitable areas, improve infrastructure in large resettlement areas, and continue to increase employment- and industry-based support.

We will increase rural revitalization support for counties that have recently eliminated poverty and carry out the initiative to upgrade their planting and animal husbandry industries by making use of their local strengths, while encouraging the purchase of products from these areas. Work-relief programs will be expanded for agricultural and rural infrastructure projects so as to help more people who have recently escaped poverty and who have low incomes to find jobs in their hometowns or in nearby areas. We will continue and improve mechanisms for east-west cooperation and paired assistance, as well as for the involvement of nongovernmental actors in such assistance. We will ensure that regular assistance is available for the low-income rural population.

2) We will continue the food crop production strategy based on farmland management and technological applications.

We will carry out a new plan for developing high-quality farmland. Taking into account water resources and the mandatory limits on their use, we will build 6.67 million hectares of high-quality farmland that give high and steady yields regardless of drought or excessive rains. We will implement a national initiative for the protection of chernozem soils and promote conservation tillage.

We will support the protection, development, and use of germplasm resources, implement projects to upgrade the modern seed industry, move forward with industrial applications of bio-breeding in an orderly manner, and build up seed production centers and centers for cultivating superior crop varieties.

We will intensify research on core agricultural technologies, provide stronger scientific and technological support for rural revitalization, encourage research and manufacturing of high-end, smart agricultural machinery as well as equipment for use in mountainous areas, and vigorously promote agricultural mechanization.

We will improve systems for animal epidemic prevention, as well as for crop disease and pest control. We will continue to modernize medium-sized and large irrigation areas and support their building of auxiliary facilities, while also reinforcing dilapidated reservoirs.

3) We will accelerate the development of rural industries.

We will encourage the creation of a complete agricultural industry chain based on local resources and strengths, and ensure that the main parts of the chain are located in counties. We will build more demonstration parks for the deeper integration of primary, secondary, and tertiary industries in rural areas, as well as more science and technology demonstration zones, modern agriculture industrial parks, towns that are strong in agribusiness, and clusters of leading agro-industries with unique features. We will improve the mechanism for integrating farmers’ interests with those of the agricultural industry chain, so that farmers can benefit more as the agricultural industry chain develops and produces more value.

We will improve the rural property rights system along with the mechanism for market-based allocation of factors of production, and promote the development of various forms of appropriately-scaled agribusinesses. We will support the growth and innovative development of leading enterprises in rural industrialization.

We will increase support for the construction of integrated distribution facilities for the sorting, processing, packaging, and precooling of farm produce. We will accelerate the development of a rural logistics system covering counties, towns, and villages, build storage and cold-chain logistics facilities for agricultural products, and push forward the development of public-welfare markets and backbone distribution networks for farm produce. We will develop rural tourism and other forms of business, develop e-commerce farm produce brands, and refine support policies for consumer services in rural areas.

4) We will pursue rural development initiatives.

We will encourage modern rural housing of better design and better quality. We will step up efforts to recycle resources from livestock and poultry waste, and proceed with the comprehensive utilization of crop straw and with the recycling of agricultural plastic sheeting and pesticide packaging.

We will carry forward the Toilet Revolution in light of local conditions, speed up the treatment of household waste water in rural areas, improve the collection, transportation, and disposal of household refuse, promote refuse sorting, reduction, and recycling, and launch initiatives to make villages more beautiful and livable.

We will ensure the coordinated planning and development of county towns, townships and villages. We will improve rural roads, water, electricity and gas supplies, and communications, radio, television, and post services, as well as other infrastructure. We will ensure the supply of safe drinking water to rural residents, build more small and medium-sized reservoirs to ensure stable water supply, strengthen protection of water resources, and carry out comprehensive improvement of rural river systems. We will carry out projects to ensure smooth road transportation and clean energy supplies in rural areas and to build a digital countryside, and we will comprehensively strengthen power supply in rural areas.

We will improve basic public services in rural areas, and develop mechanisms for the balanced distribution of public resources between urban and rural areas. We will boost integrated urban-rural development within counties, and work to realize complementary functions for counties, townships, and villages.