As 2025 dawns, China has reaffirmed its dedication to bringing more smiles to its citizens. On New Year’s Eve, Chinese premier Xi Jinping delivered his annual address from Beijing, highlighting the nation's significant strides toward modernization in 2024.
Premier Xi described the past year as \"extraordinary,\" emphasizing the government's focus on addressing the concerns of its people, including jobs, incomes, elderly and child care, education, and medical services. Throughout 2024, Xi toured various regions, engaging with ordinary citizens to understand their lives better.
China's Ministry of Finance reported that 70% of government expenditure in 2024 was directed toward enhancing the well-being of the populace. Initiatives such as the renovation of over 50,000 old urban residential communities, a multi-billion-dollar consumer goods trade-in program benefiting tens of millions, and the reduction of mortgage interest rates aiding 50 million households were implemented.
Economic indicators showed growth, with nationwide per capita disposable income reaching 30,941 yuan (approximately $4,178) in the first three quarters of 2024, marking a 5.2% increase from the previous year. Addressing the challenges of an aging population, the government allocated 300 million yuan to elderly meal assistance programs and installed 358,000 in-home care beds.
\"Of all the jobs in front of us, the most important is to ensure a happy life for our people,\" Premier Xi affirmed in his address.
On the international front, Premier Xi positioned China as a responsible major country amidst global transformations and turbulence. In 2024, China expanded its major trading partners to over 150 countries and regions and introduced 240-hour transit visa exemptions for citizens of 54 countries.
China strengthened its ties with the Global South through various cooperation frameworks, focusing on areas such as training, youth exchange, economic development, free trade, agricultural cooperation, digital economy, green development, and ecological conservation. The Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation further solidified these efforts, with China announcing a community with a shared future with Africa and committing to ten partnership actions over the next three years.
Premier Xi also highlighted China's pursuit of peaceful solutions to global issues through dialogue and consensus, notably advocating for ceasefire resolutions and fostering unity in regions facing conflicts.
\"China will work with all countries to promote friendship and cooperation, enhance mutual learning among different cultures, and build a community with a shared future for mankind,\" Premier Xi vowed as he looked forward to the achievements of 2025.
Reference(s):
Ringing in 2025, China vows to bring more smiles to its people
cgtn.com
