Ensuring Decisive Progress in Basically Realizing Socialist Modernization

The fourth plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) was successfully held in Beijing, amidst worldwide attention, from October 20 to 23, 2025. This session holds great importance as it takes place at this historic juncture when the Chinese people embark on a new journey of building our country into a modern socialist country and advance toward the Second Centenary Goal. 

Participants at the session listened to and discussed a report on the work of the Political Bureau, presented on its behalf by Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee. They also deliberated over and adopted the Recommendations of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development (hereinafter the “Recommendations”), covering the period from 2026 to 2030. This is the third recommendations for the five-year plan formulated by the CPC Central Committee since the onset of the new era that started in 2012, and the first since the Chinese people embarked on the new journey of building a modern socialist country. 

The Recommendations accurately defines the stage that the CPC and the country will enter in the 15th Five-Year Plan period, provides a thorough analysis of the profound and complex changes in China’s development environment, and sets out a top-level design and strategic plan for our development over the next five years. As a document providing guidelines for ensuring decisive social and economic progress toward basically realizing socialist modernization, it will serve as yet another overarching blueprint and call to action for further advancing Chinese modernization based on the progress we have so far made. The document demonstrates the CPC Central Committee’s initiative in uniting and leading the entire Party and all the Chinese people to write a new chapter on the miracles of rapid economic growth and long-term social stability and open up new horizons for Chinese modernization. It will undoubtedly exert a significant and far-reaching influence on the cause of the Party and the country. The international community has paid close attention to the session, widely perceiving that the session has sent a strong signal of China’s commitment to sharing opportunities and pursuing common development with the rest of the world, and has thereby injected certainty and positive energy into a world fraught with changes and disturbances. 

Socialist modernization can only be realized through a process of gradual and ongoing development. It requires the unremitting hard work of one generation after another. At its 20th National Congress in 2022, the CPC presented an overarching roadmap for the two-step strategy to build a great modern socialist country, the first step of which is to basically realize socialist modernization by 2035, a goal sought to be accomplished through the consecutive implementation of the 14th, 15th, and 16th five-year plans. As the main objectives and tasks of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) are about to be successfully accomplished, China’s economic strength, scientific and technological ability, and composite national strength all have ascended to a new level. This means we have made solid new strides in advancing Chinese modernization and gotten off to a successful start on our new journey toward the Second Centenary Goal. The period covered by the 15th Five-Year Plan will be critical in this process as we work to reinforce the foundations and push ahead on all fronts toward basically realizing socialist modernization by 2035. It will thus serve as a key link between the past and the future.

The Recommendations gives full consideration to domestic and international development trends as well as China’s own development conditions. By staying oriented toward both goals and problems and upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground, it defines the main objectives for economic and social development of the 15th Five-Year Plan period. These objectives, which reflect both the continuity and the stage-specific requirement of advancing socialist modernization, are realistic, achievable, and inspiring. A profound understanding of these objectives is of great practical significance for effectively implementing various arrangements and strategic measures outlined in the Recommendations, thereby laying more solid foundations for basically realizing socialist modernization by 2035.

In the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China’s development environment will face profound and intricate changes. Relations between major countries have an important bearing on the international landscape, the dynamics of which will in turn exert a profound impact on the domestic development of every country. China is in a period of development where strategic opportunities exist alongside risks and challenges and uncertainties and unforeseen factors are rising. However, opportunities inherently exist within crises, and crises can be turned into opportunities.

At the same time, the Chinese economy, with a solid foundation, has advantages in many areas, strong resilience, and great potential. The conditions for and underlying trend of long-term growth remain unchanged. More and more, we are seeing the strengths of socialism with Chinese characteristics, China’s enormous market, its complete industrial system, and its abundant human resources all coming to the fore. We must maintain strategic resolve and enhance our confidence in success. We must proactively identify, respond to, and steer changes, demonstrate the courage and competence to carry forward our struggle, and dare to brave high winds, choppy waters, and even dangerous storms. We must seize the historical initiative to overcome difficulties, combat risks, and confront challenges, and focus on managing our own affairs well. We will write yet another chapter on the miracles of rapid economic growth and long-term social stability, secure decisive progress toward basically realizing socialist modernization, and open up new horizons for Chinese modernization.

To secure decisive progress toward basically realizing socialist modernization, it is imperative to keep high-quality development as our main focus

Development remains our Party’s top priority in governing and rejuvenating the country. We must continue to pursue economic development as our central task and make concerted efforts to advance high-quality development. At present, there are still many obstacles and bottlenecks hindering China’s high-quality development, such as insufficient capacity for technological innovation, low-quality supply system, excessive consumption of resources and production factors, and incomplete transition to green production and lifestyles. Meanwhile, the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation continues to surge forward, profoundly reshaping the global industrial landscape and division of labor and posing even higher and more urgent demands for high-quality development.

Following the approach of the 14th Five-Year Plan, the Recommendations also defines the promotion of high-quality development as the main focus in economic and social development in the 15th Five-Year Plan period. It discusses approaches and major tasks in the key areas of industrial development, scientific and technological innovation, the domestic market, the structure of the economy, opening up, rural revitalization, coordinated regional development, cultural development, public wellbeing, green development, security and development, and national defense, thereby providing sound guidance for further promoting high-quality development. 

We must seize the historic opportunities presented by the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation, fully and faithfully apply the new development philosophy, and give greater strategic prominence to developing new quality productive forces in line with local conditions. It is essential to enhance the overall performance of China’s innovation system, raise our capacity for innovation, achieve greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology, build a modernized industrial system, and accelerate the green transition in economic and social development. These efforts will yield substantial progress and breakthroughs in boosting scientific and technological innovation, fostering new drivers of growth, and promoting the refinement and upgrading of the structure of the economy.

To secure decisive progress toward basically realizing socialist modernization, we must effectively utilize reform and innovation as the fundamental driving force 

We must recognize that in advancing Chinese modernization, there are many institutional challenges. Some institutions are still incomplete or underdeveloped; certain reform measures have yet to be fully implemented; and the current system and capacity for governance do not yet entirely meet the requirements of Chinese modernization. These issues, compounded by an increasingly challenging and complex external environment, require deeper and more urgent comprehensive reform. For instance, the key to fostering a new development dynamic lies in ensuring unimpeded economic flows. This calls for using reform measures to eliminate bottlenecks and obstacles hindering the development of a unified national market, thereby fully leveraging a large economy’s advantage of internal circulation driven by domestic demand. The over 300 reform tasks outlined at the third plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee held in 2024 are set to be fully accomplished in the 15th Five-Year Plan period.

The Recommendations maintains alignment with the goals set forth at the third plenary session, while building progressively on its major initiatives. By emphasizing building a strong domestic market, moving faster to develop a high-standard socialist market economy, and promoting high-standard opening up, it will surely provide sustained impetus and vitality for advancing Chinese modernization. We should make greater efforts to advance in-depth reform and high-standard opening up in a coordinated way, strengthen the domestic economy, and promote unimpeded domestic and international economic flows. We should better leverage the leading role of economic structural reform, improve the macroeconomic governance system, and continue to expand opening up at the institutional level so as to generate greater development momentum and vitality.

To secure decisive progress toward basically realizing socialist modernization, we must remain firmly focused on our fundamental goal of meeting the people’s growing needs for a better life 

China has achieved historic strides in raising living standards from insufficient subsistence to moderate prosperity in general and then toward moderate prosperity in all respects. However, the people’s quality of life still needs improvement. They also face difficulties in employment, education, social security, housing, healthcare, eldercare, marriage, childbirth, and childcare. Disparities in development and income distribution between urban and rural areas and between regions remain substantial. Meanwhile, we have entered the stage of making solid steps toward common prosperity for all. It is essential to firmly and gradually address this issue in the process of realizing modernization.

The Recommendations highlights the importance of making solid headway in promoting well-rounded personal development and common prosperity for all. This represents an overall requirement for economic and social development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period and vividly reflects the defining feature of Chinese modernization. To achieve common prosperity for all, we must do everything within our means to ensure that public services are inclusive, meet essential needs, and provide a cushion for those most in need. We should promote high-quality and full employment, refine the income distribution system, ensure more equitable access to basic public services, and narrow disparities between rural and urban areas and between regions. Through these measures, we will ensure a rich cultural life for all and keep increasing the sense of gain, happiness, and security that our people feel.

To secure decisive progress toward basically realizing socialist modernization, we must firmly uphold full and rigorous Party self-governance as the fundamental guarantee 

Our Party’s self-reform and the country’s economic and social development are closely interconnected, mutually reinforcing and mutually beneficial. Through the Party’s self-reform, we can promote positive new trends, rectify deep-seated problems, foster a sound political ecosystem, encourage officials to take on responsibility, and rally the people and pool their support, thereby continuously injecting momentum into economic and social development. Practice has proven that the more effective the Party’s self-governance is, the stronger the guarantee provided for economic and social development. We must be clearly aware that the fight against corruption continues to be one that is grave and complex.

The Recommendations lays out important arrangements for using our Party’s self-reform to steer social reform and staying committed to strengthening full and rigorous Party self-governance. These require us to steadfastly implement the central Party leadership’s eight-point decision on improving work conduct, resolutely stamp out all forms of misconduct, improve the Party and state oversight systems, and keep waging the tough, protracted, and all-out battle against corruption. We must maintain a tough stance against corruption, investigate and handle corruption cases in accordance with the laws and regulations, and impose strict punishments on corrupt individuals. There should be no pause or concession in this fight, leaving no room for corrupt officials to hide. We must resolutely implement the requirements of the Party’s self-reform, devote sustained and consistent efforts to improving conduct, and motivate Party members and officials to take responsibility and achieve tangible results. This way, we will provide a strong guarantee for fulfilling the major objectives for economic and social development in the 15th Five-Year Plan period.

Studying and implementing the guiding principles from the fourth plenary session represents a major political task for the entire Party and nation, both at present and in the period to come. We must carry out study activities, instruction lectures, and communication initiatives of the session’s guiding principles with a high degree of political stance and conscious action. Making diligent efforts and forging ahead with determination, we will strive to bring the vision for economic and social development in the 15th Five-Year Plan period to tangible outcomes and continue to break new ground in building a great country and advancing national rejuvenation through Chinese modernization.

(Originally appeared in Qiushi Journal, Chinese edition, No. 21, 2025)