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Speakers:

Liu Guozhong, secretary of the Shaanxi Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and chairman of the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of Shaanxi Province

Zhao Yide, vice secretary of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and governor of the People's Government of Shaanxi Province

Wang Xiao, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee

Chairperson:

Chen Wenjun, spokesperson of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee

Date:

June 9, 2021

Chen Wenjun:

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to this press conference held by the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee.

Shaanxi province is of great importance in the history of the CPC. The revolutionary base of Shaanxi and Gansu provinces was the foothold of the CPC Central Committee and the Red Army's Long March, as well as the starting point from where the Party led the people's army to head for the frontlines of the war of resistance against Japanese aggression and fight for a new China. The older generation of revolutionaries and CPC members left behind precious cultural wealth in Yan'an. This has inspired generations of CPC members to continuously carry forward the Yan'an spirit, strengthen the faith, deepen their sense of Party consciousness, and consistently work hard to make more progress along the correct political direction.

Alongside the celebrations for the CPC's centenary, today we have invited Mr. Liu Guozhong, secretary of the Shaanxi Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and chairman of the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of Shaanxi Province; Mr. Zhao Yide, vice secretary of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and governor of the People's Government of Shaanxi Province; and Mr. Wang Xiao, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee. They will brief you on issues related to "Shaanxi: Carrying forward the Yan'an spirit and endeavoring to write a new chapter of accelerated growth in the new era," and then take your questions.

Now, let's give the floor to Mr. Liu.

Liu Guozhong:

Ladies and gentlemen, friends from the media, good morning. As we prepare to celebrate the centenary of the CPC, it is my pleasure to meet with you here. First, on behalf of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee, the People's Government of Shaanxi Province, and the 39.5 million hardworking and brave people of Shaanxi, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to our friends from the media for their long-term care and support for our province.

Shaanxi is one of the key birthplaces of the Chinese nation and its civilization. It bears witness to China's glorious revolutionary history. The revolutionary base of Shaanxi and Gansu provinces was the foothold of the CPC Central Committee and the Central Red Army's Long March, as well as the starting point from where the Eighth Route Army headed for the frontlines of the war of resistance against Japanese aggression. The base was also the only complete revolutionary base left in China during the late stage of the Agrarian Revolutionary War (1927-1937). Staying in Yan'an for 13 years, the CPC Central Committee led China's revolutionary endeavor to reach its upsurge, achieving a historic turning point. The Yan'an spirit has become a significant component of the CPC's spiritual pedigree. Under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee and the education and inspiration of the Yan'an spirit, generations of people in Shaanxi have passed on the "red culture" in their genes and worked hard to bring groundbreaking changes to the province. Shaanxi's gross domestic product (GDP) has risen from less than 1.3 billion yuan in the early days of the People's Republic of China to 2.62 trillion yuan in 2020. The average per capita disposable income of urban residents increased from some 300 yuan in the early days of China's reform and opening-up to nearly 38,000 yuan in 2020, meanwhile the figure for rural residents grew from over 100 yuan to more than 13,000 yuan during the same period. Forest coverage also increased from 32.55% before the large-scale efforts of turning marginal farmland into forest to over 45% in 2020.

General Secretary Xi Jinping has paid great attention to Shaanxi's development. In February 2015, when General Secretary Xi inspected the province and visited local cadres and people, he pointed out that "Shaanxi is experiencing accelerated growth," and required us to make solid effortsin the five aspects of promoting sustained and healthy economic growth, developing modern agriculture with local advantages, strengthening cultural development, ensuring and improving people's wellbeing, and enforcing full and rigorous self-discipline of the Party. General Secretary Xi inspected Shaanxi again last April, expressing his earnest expectation that the province should "endeavor to write a new chapter of accelerated growth in the new era," and put forward another five requirements: making more efforts on high-quality economic development, establishing reform and opening-up areas in inland regions, continuously improving the environment, strengthening social security and social development, and ensuring strict Party self-governance. All sectors of Shaanxi province have been implementing General Secretary Xi's important remarks as the overarching principles of our work, making concerted and arduous efforts, and striving to make new progress in every field.

First, under the guidance of the important remarks delivered by General Secretary Xi , Shaanxi has sped up efforts to tap into its potential for innovation and creativity. Sci-tech innovation is Shaanxi's most prominent advantage. There are over 100 universities, more than 1,500 scientific research institutes, 66 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering, as well as over 2 million professional technical personnel in Shaanxi. The National Time Service Center is located in the province. Meanwhile, Shaanxi's strength in sci-tech has contributed to several of China's major sci-tech achievements such as the Jiaolong deep-sea submersible, the Chang'e lunar probe, and the Tianwen-1 Mars probe. We have been further developing these innovation resources by strengthening innovation efforts from enterprises, supporting entrepreneurship among talents, and providing favorable government policies. All of these have translated into sustained industrial growth in the fields of aviation and aerospace, equipment manufacturing, digital information, artificial intelligence, new materials, biomedicine and many others. Shaanxi ranks high among provinces in western China for the number of listed firms on China's sci-tech innovation board, and its high- and new-tech enterprises grew by 41% last year. Shaanxi's industrial chains in the energy and chemical sector have seen more added value. Its modern agriculture utilizing local advantages is thriving, and one out of every seven apples in the world and every four apples in China comes from Shaanxi. This year, Shaanxi has launched an innovation promotion platform, which will serve as the province's portal for innovation-driven development. The platform has pooled innovation resources from a group of universities, research institutes and enterprises. The move has received a significant amount of positive feedback. Enterprises, sci-tech research institutes, agencies and financing institutes have all sought cooperation via the platform.

Second, under the guidance of the important remarks delivered by General Secretary Xi, Shaanxi has maintained continuous vitality for opening-up and development. Shaanxihas been an important gateway to the outside world since ancient times. More than 2,100 years ago, Zhang Qian, an imperial envoy of the Han Dynasty (202 BC-220 AD) set out from Chang'an, today's Xi'an, and established the Silk Road, which runs from east to west and connects Europe and Asia. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) once again put Shaanxi at the forefront of China's westward opening-up. Giving full play to this advantage, we have coordinated opening-up both internally and externally, enhanced the development of opening-up channels and platforms including airports, land ports, pilot free trade zones, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) demonstration base for agricultural technology training and exchange, and the Silk Road International Expo. We have also accelerated our steps to build an open economy on a higher level. Despite the impact of COVID-19 last year, the number of China-Europe freight trains – named "Chang'an" – increased by 74%. Shaanxi ranked first in the country in terms of the number, the volume of goods delivered and the percentage of trains fully loaded. Applied foreign investment in the province grew by9.2%, and our imports and exports with countries along the BRI increased by 26.7%. While expanding opening-up, we actively promoted market-oriented reforms and vigorously improved the business environment. Last year, the number of market entities in the province increased by 12%.

Third, under the guidance of the important remarks delivered by General Secretary Xi, Shaanxi has seen visible progress in ecological preservation. Two great rivers, namely, the Yangtze River and the Yellow River, run through Shaanxi. The Qinling Mountains, as a natural dividing line between the country's north and south, serve also an important shield for ecological security. Drawing lessons from incidents of illegal villa construction in the Qinling Mountains, we have implemented the idea that "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets," and endeavored to protect our blue skies, clear waters, and clean lands. For the first time, the proportion of areas with a quality ecological environment in the Qinling Mountains in Shaanxi exceeded 96%. The Loess Plateau has become the area with the largest increase in green coverage in the country. The Hanjiang River and Danjiang River, with their excellent water quality, have provided 70% of the water delivery volume of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. A total of 10 major cities in the province saw an average of 295 good air quality days last year. The soundecological environment has promoted the reproduction of wild animals. The number of crested ibises in Shaanxi has increased from seven when they were first discovered in 1981 to more than 5,300. The largest and densest population of leopards in China lives in the Ziwuling Forest Area in Yan'an. Shaanxi is a major province of energy production. We are earnestly implementing the central government's deployment and requirements on carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, refining the task of carbon reduction to specific projects, specific enterprises and specific places, and accelerating the green and low-carbon development of the economy and society.

Fourth, under the guidance of the important remarks delivered by General Secretary Xi, Shaanxi has consolidated the foundation for ensuring people's well-being. The people's aspiration for a better life is our goal. We have kept improving the wellbeing of the people through development and focused on solving the issues of greatest concern among the people. All 2.88 million impoverished people in rural areas were lifted out of poverty and all 56 poverty-stricken counties were removed from the poverty list. Businesses that leverage local strengths have been growing in the fight against poverty. In Zhashui county, General Secretary Xi applauded the role of the small black fungus in poverty reduction as "small fungus, big industry." The fungus industrial chain provides 65% of work in the county integrating R&D, production, processing, and sales. All counties in Shaanxi have achieved the balanced development of compulsory education. All major cities have been nominated "healthy”"for their wholesome surroundings. The medical service system has been improved, and a social security network covering the entire population has taken shape. We have been steadily advancing cultural development in the province. Community-level public cultural services have been continuously improved and positive progress has been made in pursuing the high-quality development of the cultural industry. The 14th National Games of the People's Republic of China and the 11th National Games for Persons with Disabilities & 8th National Special Olympics Games will be held in Shaanxi this year, which marks the 100th anniversary of the CPC. We would like to invite friends from the media to attend the games and experience the new life of the Shaanxi people.

Fifth, under the guidance of the important remarks delivered by General Secretary Xi, Shaanxi has created a healthier atmosphere of integrity. General Secretary Xi Jinping encouraged Shaanxi to have the ambition and courage to stand at the forefront and ride the waves of our day in the new era. We held Party history learning and education activities in Yan'an, Zhaojin, Malan and other places with sites and heritage related to CPC history to help Party members enhance their faith and confidence and forge the pioneering spirit of hard work. We urged them to work for accelerated growth in a down-to-earth manner and ensure the Two Upholds (upholding General Secretary Xi Jinping's core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole, and upholding the Party Central Committee's authority and its centralized, unified leadership) with concrete action. We have been making continuous and tireless efforts to tighten discipline and improve Party conduct, fight corruption and punish wrongdoing, and resolutely eradicate the pernicious influence of Zhao Zhengyong. We continued moving further forward with full and rigorous governance over the Party, thus ensuring the implementation of General Secretary Xi's important remarks, and decisions and plans made by the CPC Central Committee.

Reviewing new progress in the various undertakings of Shaanxi province as a reflection of the remarkable accomplishments achieved by the Party and the country, we have a deeper understanding that General Secretary Xi Jinping is at the core of the Party Central Committee and the Party as a whole, and is the backbone and anchor of all Party members and all the Chinese people as we move forward. We also have a deeper understanding that Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is Marxism in contemporary China and in the 21st century and has incomparable power of truth and practice. After entering a new phase and embarking on a new journey, we will rally more closely around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, uphold Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and carefully study and put into practice the principles from General Secretary Xi Jinping's important remarks during his inspection tours in Shaanxi. We will follow a new development philosophy based on an accurate and comprehensive understanding and implement the "five requirements" and "five solids" to promote high-quality development, ensure high life quality and achieve high-efficiency governance. We will carry forward the Yan'an Spirit and work hard with courage and perseverance to write a new chapter of accelerated growth in the new era. That's my introduction, thank you.

Chen Wenjun:

Thank you, Mr. Liu. The floor is now open for questions. Please identify your news outlets before asking questions.