BEIJING: The 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) began its fourth plenary session in Beijing on Monday, setting the stage for the country’s next phase of economic and social development.
Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, presented a comprehensive work report on behalf of the Political Bureau and elaborated on the Party leadership’s draft proposals for the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026–2030).
According to the session’s agenda, delegates will review the Political Bureau’s report and deliberate on the proposals for China’s next five-year blueprint—an exercise that marks both a reflection on the current development cycle and a strategic outlook toward the future.
The meeting is seen as pivotal in China’s journey toward building a “great modern socialist country,” as it designs a roadmap for what the Party describes as a “critical five years” leading up to the realization of socialist modernization.
The upcoming plan emphasizes six key commitments: upholding the Party’s overall leadership, prioritizing the people’s welfare, pursuing high-quality growth, deepening reforms, strengthening the interaction between market efficiency and government capacity, and ensuring development-security balance. Together, these principles outline China’s strategy for sustainable, self-reliant, and secure progress.
The 15th Five-Year Plan is being described as a new mobilization for Chinese modernization. It aims to align the nation’s institutional strengths with clear, long-term goals, consolidating public consensus through broad consultation and coordinated policymaking.
Reflecting on the outgoing 14th Five-Year Plan (2021–2025), the report highlights China’s resilience in the face of a turbulent global environment, including the COVID-19 pandemic and shifting geopolitical realities. During this period, China implemented 17 major strategic tasks, 102 key projects, and over 5,000 programs—achieving steady economic growth alongside green transformation and technological innovation.
Key sectors such as high-end manufacturing, digital technology, and low-carbon industries flourished, while innovation-driven policies deepened the integration of talent, science, and capital, fueling the rise of new productive forces.
Globally, the CPC leadership noted, the world is undergoing transformations unseen in a century. Rising protectionism, geopolitical frictions, and fragmented international cooperation have intensified global instability. The statement also observed that many Western nations are grappling with governance paralysis caused by political polarization, hindering effective decision-making on long-term issues.
Amid this uncertainty, the session’s deliberations are being closely watched by the international community, as China remains the largest contributor to global economic growth for ten consecutive years. The CPC’s new five-year roadmap is expected to provide direction not only for domestic development but also for international cooperation.
With strategic determination and a forward-looking vision, China seeks to deepen its modernization drive, enhance governance efficiency, and project stability at home and abroad. Officials say this reflects the country’s confidence in its political and economic model—a system they believe can contribute “greater stability and positive energy” to global development.
The convening of the Fourth Plenary Session, observers note, symbolizes China’s entry into a new stage of governance refinement, social harmony, and economic vitality. A more confident and open China, the report concludes, aims to work with other nations to uphold fairness, promote shared human values, and jointly address global challenges—striving toward “a better future for all.”
