Key meeting chaired by Xi pushes to advance reform, opening-up

Coordinated efforts must be stepped up to promote construction of the Hainan pilot free trade zone as the nation advances reform and opening-up, a meeting of the Central Committee for Deepening Overall Reform decided on Wednesday.

The meeting, presided over by President Xi Jinping, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, called for more efforts to advance reform and opening-up based on experiences and achievements in the past four decades.

Xi said the significance of continued reform and opening-up must be fully understood so that the nation will make united efforts to keep moving forward the reform and opening-up drive. Xi is also head of the Central Committee for Deepening Overall Reform.

Construction of the free trade zone is a new mission the nation has given to Hainan, according to a statement released after the meeting.

The CPC Central Committee fully supports Hainan in building a pilot free trade zone across the whole island so as to gradually explore and steadily promote construction of a free trade port with Chinese characteristics, the statement said.

Concrete efforts must be made to implement the innovation-driven development strategy in Hainan, and policy and financial supports must be leveraged to speed development of the pilot free trade zone, the statement went on.

A general plan for construction of the Hainan free trade zone was released last month. According to the plan, the zone will cover all of Hainan and is intended to have made significant progress by 2020.

The pilot zone is expected to be an international tourism and shopping center and offer support for the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012, China has taken concrete steps to advance overall reform and open up more courageously and vigorously with firmer determination, the statement said.

Deepening reform and expanding opening-up must stay in synergy with the realization of the "Two Centenary Goals" as well as national rejuvenation, it said.

Meeting participants adopted a series of documents in areas like reform of the government procurement system and an action plan on implementing national vocational education.