China to accelerate key projects to grow further

BEIJING: China will accelerate the implementation of major projects outlined in the 14th Five-Year (2021-2025) plan for social and economic development with expanded investment, the State Council, or the cabinet, has decided.

A State Council executive meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang on Monday said that, as viable policies and detailed plans had been created, relevant authorities should speed up the major projects with solid measures and in an orderly fashion.

As the Chinese economy is in a crucial period, the country should give higher priority to stabilizing economic growth, continue its strategy of expanding domestic demand, and take targeted steps to boost consumption and investment, according to the meeting.

Pushing forward all major projects in the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the country will accordingly ensure the financing, land use and energy supply for critical sectors such as food and energy security, the advanced manufacturing and high-tech industries, logistics and telecommunications, and urban government-subsidized housing.

The meeting vowed streamlined administrative procedures for those ready-to-go projects, in particular major water-conservancy projects, to accelerate the implementation.

On the local level, the country will put into use the 1.2 trillion yuan (about $188.5 billion) of local-government special bonds issued in the fourth quarter of 2021, and accelerate the issuance of the front-loaded 2022 bond quota, the meeting decided.

The meeting also stressed accelerating the centralized bulk buying of drugs, especially medicines for chronic diseases and common illnesses, and highvalue medical consumables such as dental implants to further reduce medical costs.

By the end of last year, the government procurement had helped save 260 billion yuan in medical-insurance costs and patient expenditure, according to the meeting.