GUANGDONG, a manufacturing heartland and trade powerhouse in South China, has proposed a set of key goals for the next five years, as it aspires to stay at the forefront and create new achievements in the country’s drive to build a modern socialist country in all respects.

Guangdong Party chief Li Xi outlined the goals in a report presented at the opening session of the 13th Guangdong Provincial Congress of the Communist Party of China in Guangzhou on Sunday.

Over the next five years, Guangdong aims to make new progress in high-quality development, obtain new reform and opening-up breakthroughs, and further improve its civilization level. It endeavors to make new achievements in building a beautiful Guangdong, improve people’s well-being to new heights, and advance social governance effectiveness.

Li called for a greater focus on major pilot reforms, such as Shenzhen’s comprehensive pilot reforms, expanding opening up for an open economy, and doing a better job of building higher-level special economic zones.

Li emphasized the importance of furthering the implementation of nine key tasks.

Guangdong will continue to promote the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the construction of Shenzhen as a pilot demonstration area of socialism with Chinese characteristics, as well as the two cooperation zones of Hengqin in Zhuhai and Qianhai in Shenzhen.

The province will develop a more internationally competitive modern industrial system, expand domestic demand while stabilizing foreign demand, and enhance modern infrastructure construction.

It will make concerted efforts to promote sci-tech self-reliance and self-strengthening at higher levels, and build a highland of sci-tech and industrial innovation with global influence.

The province will also strive to advance rural revitalization, achieve higher-level regional coordinated development, provide high-quality cultural services, strengthen ecological environment protection, improve people’s well-being, and build a safe and law-based society.

Guangdong’s 2021 GDP recorded a growth of 8% to 12.4 trillion yuan (US$1.95 trillion). The province’s foreign trade surpassed 8 trillion yuan last year, up 16.7% year on year, according to this year’s provincial government work report.

The quinquennial provincial Party congress, attended by 905 delegates from across Guangdong this year, will set explicit tones for the development of the province over the next five years.

At the congress, which will end tomorrow, delegates will hear and examine the report of the province’s Party committee as well as the report of the commission for discipline inspection. The congress will also elect the next provincial Party committee, the provincial commission for discipline inspection, and the delegates to the upcoming CPC National Congress, which will be held in the second half of 2022 in Beijing.

(Zhang Yu)