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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) — China's leaders will gather for a key party meeting from Oct. 20 to 23 to discuss the country's next five-year plan, a policy roadmap that outlines key areas of the country's development and will have an impact far beyond China's borders.
This meeting, known as the 20th plenary session of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC CC), is the fourth since the election of the new Central Committee in 2022.
What is a plenum? How are China's five-year development plans developed, and why are they important? Let's take a closer look.
WHAT IS A PLENUM?
For the CPC, which has more than 100 million members, the highest governing bodies are the National Congress of the CPC and the Central Committee it elects.
Since the National Congress of the CPC is convened every five years, the CPC Central Committee acts on its behalf between the previous and new convocations, holding plenary sessions at least once a year to make key political decisions.
The current CPC Central Committee has approximately 200 members, many of whom are provincial party committee leaders, provincial-level heads of government, and ministers. Candidates for the CPC Central Committee who are next in line to fill vacancies on the Central Committee also participate in plenary sessions.
According to the agenda, the upcoming plenary session will hear a report on the work of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee and consider proposals for developing the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) for the country's economic and social development.
Proposals for the new plan will be released after the plenum. The final plan is expected to be presented in March 2026, when it will be reviewed and approved by the National People's Congress (NPC), China's highest legislative body.
WHAT IS CHINA'S FIVE-YEAR PLAN?
The formulation and implementation of five-year plans is a distinctive feature of the CPC's governance, enabling China to promote coordinated economic and social development in the medium and long term.
According to experts, this approach ensures continuity and stability of policy in relation to established goals, and also allows for the efficient and highly accurate allocation of resources.
China's first Five-Year Plan was implemented in the 1950s, and since then, China has implemented 14 Five-Year Plans. After the country began implementing reform and opening up in 1978, it began developing a socialist market economy but did not abandon the practice of planning. Instead, the system for developing such plans was reformed and improved to further enhance its effectiveness.
In China, five-year plans have guided the country's continuous progress in developing and improving living standards for decades: from ensuring sufficient food and clothing during the 6th and 7th Five-Year Plans in the 1980s to China becoming the world's second-largest economy during the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2010).
According to Li Zhongjie, an expert on the history of the CPC, China's modernization is carried out through the gradual implementation of five-year plans and programs that are interconnected and complementary.
In a break with tradition, the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) did not set quantitative targets for GDP growth; instead, it described expected growth in broader terms, partly to emphasize quality over speed.
Given their far-reaching impact, China's five-year plans are developed over several years, taking into account research, expert assessments, inter-agency coordination, and public opinion.
Once they identify key tasks, specialized and local plans break them down into specific steps to ensure effective implementation, said Dong Yu, executive vice director of the Institute of China Development Planning at Tsinghua University.
"Five-year plans are far more than just pieces of paper," Dong Yu added. "They are a fully integrated system for turning goals into reality."
China's five-year development plans have also become an important window for other countries to observe China and learn from its development experience. Inspired by China's experience, more and more countries are adopting their own medium- and long-term development strategies.
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE 15TH FIVE-YEAR PLAN
The 15th Five-Year Plan is of extraordinary significance because there are only 10 years left until 2035, when China aims to “basically achieve socialist modernization.”
The plan, covering the period 2026-2030, is expected to be developed based on a comprehensive assessment of global trends and will serve as a framework for China's development in line with changing conditions.
By outlining key goals and measures in economic growth, technological innovation, livelihoods and other areas, the plan will prioritize high-quality development based on innovation.
Based on China's commitment to developing new productive forces adapted to local conditions, efforts to modernize the industrial system are expected to accelerate during the 15th Five-Year Plan. Targeted measures will be aimed at strengthening the real economy, upgrading traditional industries, developing emerging sectors, and strategically planning for future industries.
At the same time, the plan will aim to strengthen the national innovation system and promote the integrated development of education, science and technology, as well as the training of highly qualified specialists.
"Forward-looking planning is needed to chart a new industrial landscape in the upcoming five-year plan," Dong Yu said.
Reform will be another priority of the plan, as 2029—the target year for completing more than 300 reform measures outlined at the Third Plenary Session of the CPC Central Committee in 2024—falls within the next five-year period. The next stage of China's development will likely be one of deepening reform and promoting high-level opening-up.
Preventing risks and addressing challenges both domestically and internationally will be another priority of the plan, as development and security are equally important in shaping China's future course.
Brazilian scholar Maria Luisa Falcão Silva sees a lesson in this for the entire world. "While much of the West struggled with cycles of crisis—political deadlock, trade wars, populism—China forged ahead, implementing a long-term national plan," she said.
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