Full text of Xi’s remarks on poverty relief made public

Xinhua News Agency Thursday published the full text of remarks made by Chinese President Xi Jinping when presiding over a symposium on poverty relief held in north China’s Shanxi Province on June 23.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, reiterated the need for joint efforts and precise measures to eradicate extreme poverty.

Areas suffering from abject poverty face the toughest job in poverty alleviation, Xi said.

There must be better support and more effective measures, Xi told the symposium.

China has set a target to build a moderately prosperous society in all respects by 2020, including complete eradication of poverty. The task becomes more difficult as the process nears its end.

“As long as we pay great attention, think correctly, take effective measures and work in a down-to-earth way, abject poverty is absolutely conquerable,” Xi said.

Xi raised a series of requirements on advancing the poverty alleviation effort in areas plagued by extreme poverty.

He said these areas must also meet the national target on eradicating poverty by 2020. Meanwhile, they need to be realistic in setting goals.

Local governments should take the lead in poverty relief with financial capital playing a coordinating role, Xi said, noting that newly added poverty relief funds will primarily be used in the most impoverished areas.

He said China must gather its forces nationwide to ensure the coverage of public services, infrastructure and basic medical services in these areas.

The president promised more residents living in extremely harsh natural environments will receive assistance to relocate, job posts such as forest rangers in ecologically vulnerable regions will be increased, and assistance will be stepped up for those who became impoverished due to medical reasons.

Impoverished areas should improve their economic development model by focusing on industries that will benefit the poor, such as specialty agriculture, labor-intensive manufacturing and services, Xi said.

He also asked developed regions in the country’s east and state entities to increase their assistance to the most impoverished areas, and encouraged the participation of the wider society.

Poverty relief in these areas should focus on empowering and stimulating the people and helping them develop basic job skills in non-agricultural industries, he said.

Local authorities should be strict and honest with poverty relief schedules and achievements, he said, adding that China will implement a strict evaluation system and insist on an annual reporting and supervision mechanism.

The full text of Xi’s remarks will also be carried in Friday’s Qiushi Journal, the flagship magazine of the CPC Central Committee.