Study of the 15th Five-Year Plan

The Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was held from October 20-23, 2025. It reviewed and adopted the “Proposals of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Formulating the Fifteenth Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development”, basically setting the tone for China’s development in the next 5-10 years.

Historical Positioning of the 15th Five-Year Plan

The “15th Five-Year Plan” period is a key period for consolidating foundations and exerting full force. Formulating and implementing the “15th Five-Year Plan” well will lay a more solid foundation for basically achieving socialist modernization by 2035. The 15th Five-Year Plan holds an important position of connecting the past and the future in the process of basically achieving socialist modernization. We must deeply understand the decisive significance of the “Two Establishments”, which means that the core leadership will remain stable during the 15th Five-Year Plan period.

Overall Judgment of China’s Development Environment during the 15th Five-Year Plan

Relations between major powers affect the international situation, and the evolution of the international situation profoundly affects domestic development. China’s development is in a period where strategic opportunities and risks and challenges coexist, and uncertain and unpredictable factors are increasing. From an international perspective, the evolution of changes unseen in a century is accelerating, and the balance of international power is undergoing profound adjustments. From a domestic perspective, China’s economic foundation is stable, with many advantages, strong resilience, and great potential. The supporting conditions and basic trend of long-term improvement have not changed. “During the ‘15th Five-Year Plan’ period, we must not only take advantage of the momentum but also face difficulties head-on, transforming advantages in all aspects into actual effectiveness of high-quality development.”

Main Objectives of the 15th Five-Year Plan

By 2030, the objectives of the 15th Five-Year Plan will be completed, significant results will be achieved in high-quality development, the level of scientific and technological self-reliance and self-strengthening will be greatly improved, new breakthroughs will be made in further comprehensively deepening reforms, the degree of social civilization will be significantly improved, people’s quality of life will continue to improve, new major progress will be made in the construction of a Beautiful China, and the national security barrier will be further consolidated.

• During the “15th Five-Year Plan” period, the centenary goal of the military must be achieved as scheduled.
• By the 80th anniversary of the founding of New China, the reform tasks proposed by the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Party will be completed.
• By 2035, reach the level of moderately developed countries and basically achieve socialist modernization.

Vision 2035 Objectives Looking ahead to 2035, China will basically achieve socialist modernization. Economic strength, scientific and technological strength, and comprehensive national power will leap significantly. The total economic volume and per capita income of urban and rural residents will step up to a new large level. Key core technologies will achieve major breakthroughs, entering the forefront of innovative countries. Basically achieve new industrialization, informatization, urbanization, and agricultural modernization, and build a modern economic system. Basically achieve the modernization of the national governance system and governance capabilities, fully guarantee people’s rights to equal participation and equal development, and basically build a country ruled by law, a government ruled by law, and a society ruled by law. Build a strong cultural country, a strong educational country, a strong talent country, a strong sports country, and a Healthy China. The quality of nationals and the degree of social civilization will reach a new height, and the national cultural soft power will be significantly enhanced. Green production and lifestyle will be widely formed, carbon emissions will stabilize and then decline after peaking, the ecological environment will fundamentally improve, and the goal of building a Beautiful China will be basically achieved. A new pattern of opening up to the outside world will be formed, and new advantages in participating in international economic cooperation and competition will be significantly enhanced. Per capita GDP will reach the level of moderately developed countries, the middle-income group will expand significantly, basic public services will be equalized, and the development gap between urban and rural areas and regions and the gap in residents’ living standards will be significantly narrowed. The construction of a Peaceful China will reach a higher level, and the modernization of national defense and the military will be basically achieved. People’s lives will be better, and more obvious substantive progress will be made in the comprehensive development of people and the common prosperity of all people.

To basically achieve socialist modernization by 2035, it needs to be completed through the implementation of the three five-year plans: the “14th Five-Year Plan”, “15th Five-Year Plan”, and “16th Five-Year Plan”.

Build a Modern Industrial System, Consolidate and Strengthen the Foundation of the Real Economy China’s economy started with the real economy and must also rely on the real economy to move towards the future. Insist on placing the focus of economic development on the real economy[^1], adhere to the direction of intelligence, greening, and integration, accelerate the construction of a manufacturing power, a quality power, an aerospace power, a transportation power, and a network power, maintain a reasonable proportion of manufacturing, and build a modern industrial system with advanced manufacturing as the backbone. It is necessary to optimize and upgrade traditional industries (preliminary estimates suggest that there will be a new market space of about 10 trillion yuan in the next 5 years), cultivate and expand emerging industries and future industries (the new scale in the next 10 years is equivalent to rebuilding a Chinese high-tech industry), promote the high-quality and efficient development of the service industry, and build a modern infrastructure system.

High-level Scientific and Technological Self-reliance and Self-strengthening, Leading the Development of New Quality Productive Forces Seize the historical opportunities of the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, coordinate the construction of a strong educational country, a strong scientific and technological country, and a strong talent country, improve the overall effectiveness of the national innovation system, comprehensively enhance independent innovation capabilities, seize the commanding heights of scientific and technological development, and constantly generate new quality productive forces. It is necessary to strengthen original innovation and key core technology breakthroughs, promote the deep integration of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation, promote the integrated development of education, technology and talents, and deeply promote the construction of Digital China.

Build a Strong Domestic Market, Accelerate the Construction of a New Development Pattern Insist on expanding domestic demand as a strategic basis, insist on the close combination of benefiting people’s livelihood and promoting consumption, investing in things and investing in people, leading new supply with new demand, creating new demand with new supply, promoting benign interaction between consumption and investment, supply and demand, and enhancing the endogenous driving force and reliability of the domestic circulation. It is necessary to vigorously boost consumption, expand effective investment, and resolutely break the blocking points and sticking points that hinder the construction of a unified national market.

Accelerate the Construction of a High-level Socialist Market Economy System, Enhance the Driving Force for High-quality Development Adhere to and improve the basic socialist economic system, better play the leading role of economic system reform, improve the macroeconomic governance system, and ensure that high-quality development goes steady and far. It is necessary to fully stimulate the vitality of various business entities, accelerate the improvement of the system and mechanism for market-based allocation of factors, and improve the effectiveness of macroeconomic governance.

Expand High-level Opening Up, Create a New Situation of Win-Win Cooperation Steadily expand institutional opening up, maintain the multilateral trading system, expand international circulation, promote reform and development through opening up, and share opportunities and common development with countries around the world. It is necessary to actively expand independent opening up, promote the innovative development of trade, expand the space for two-way investment cooperation, build the “Belt and Road” with high quality, and coordinate the promotion of major landmark projects and “small but beautiful” people’s livelihood projects.

Accelerate Agricultural and Rural Modernization, Solidly Promote Comprehensive Rural Revitalization Insist on regarding solving the “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” issues as the top priority of the whole party’s work, promote urban-rural integrated development, continue to consolidate and expand the results of poverty alleviation, promote rural areas to basically possess modern living conditions, and accelerate the construction of a strong agricultural country. It is necessary to improve the comprehensive agricultural production capacity and quality and efficiency, promote the construction of livable, workable and beautiful countryside, and improve the effectiveness of policies to strengthen agriculture, benefit farmers and enrich farmers.

Optimize Regional Economic Layout, Promote Coordinated Regional Development Give play to the superimposed effects of the coordinated regional development strategy, major regional strategies, main functional zone strategy, and new urbanization strategy, optimize the layout of major productive forces, play the role of growth poles in key regions, and build a regional economic layout and territorial space system with complementary advantages and high-quality development. It is necessary to enhance the coordination of regional development, promote regional linked development, optimize the pattern of territorial space development, deeply promote people-centered new urbanization, and strengthen marine development, utilization and protection.

Three Focuses: First, focus on optimizing layout, including optimizing regional layout and territorial space pattern; second, focus on new urbanization, scientifically and orderly promoting the citizenization of agricultural transfer population, and vigorously implementing measures such as urban renewal; third, focus on land-sea coordination, further promoting the high-quality development of the marine economy, and accelerating the construction of a maritime power.

Stimulate the Cultural Innovation and Creativity Vitality of the Whole Nation, Prosper and Develop Socialist Culture Adhere to the guiding position of Marxism in the ideological field, take root in the broad and profound Chinese civilization, conform to the trend of information technology development, develop socialist culture with Chinese characteristics in the new era that has strong ideological guiding power, spiritual cohesive power, value appeal, and international influence, and solidly promote the construction of a strong cultural country. It is necessary to carry forward and practice socialist core values, vigorously prosper cultural undertakings, accelerate the development of the cultural industry, and enhance the communication power and influence of Chinese civilization.

Increase Efforts to Ensure and Improve People’s Livelihood, Solidly Promote Common Prosperity for All People Insist on doing our best and acting according to our capabilities, strengthen the construction of inclusive, basic, and bottom-line people’s livelihood, solve the problems that the masses are anxious, worried, and looking forward to, smooth social mobility channels, and improve people’s quality of life. It is necessary to promote high-quality full employment, improve the income distribution system, run education that satisfies the people well, improve the social security system, promote the high-quality development of real estate, accelerate the construction of a Healthy China, promote high-quality population development, and steadily promote the equalization of basic public services.

Accelerate the Comprehensive Green Transition of Economic and Social Development, Build a Beautiful China Firmly establish and practice the concept that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets, take carbon peaking and carbon neutrality as the lead, coordinately promote carbon reduction, pollution reduction, green expansion, and growth, build a solid ecological security barrier, and enhance the momentum of green development. It is necessary to continue to deeply promote the battle against pollution and ecosystem optimization, accelerate the construction of a new energy system, actively and steadily promote and achieve carbon peaking, and accelerate the formation of green production and lifestyles.

Promote the Modernization of National Security System and Capabilities, Build a Higher Level Peaceful China Unswervingly implement the overall national security concept, follow the path of socialist social governance with Chinese characteristics, and ensure that society is vibrant and orderly. It is necessary to improve the national security system, strengthen national security capability construction in key areas, improve the level of public safety governance, and improve the social governance system.

Achieve the Centenary Goal of the Military as Scheduled, Promote the Modernization of National Defense and the Military with High Quality Implement Xi Jinping’s thinking on strengthening the military, implement the military strategic guidelines for the new era, adhere to the party’s absolute leadership over the people’s army, implement the chairman responsibility system of the Military Commission, and in accordance with the new “three-step” strategy for the modernization of national defense and the military, promote political army building, reform and strengthening the military, science and technology strengthening the military, talent strengthening the military, and governing the military according to law, fighting, preparing for war, and building at the same time, accelerate the integrated development of mechanization, informatization, and intelligence, and improve the strategic ability to defend national sovereignty, security, and development interests. It is necessary to accelerate the construction of advanced combat capabilities, promote the modernization of military governance, and consolidate and improve the integrated national strategic system and capabilities.

Interpretation of Meeting Spirit

Meeting Word Cloud

Meeting Sidelights

Foreign media commented one after another: “This meeting is crucial for determining the long-term policies of the world’s second-largest economy.” “China will reiterate a steady and pragmatic development vision, and it is this vision that supports it in resisting the impact of global uncertainty and maintaining development momentum.” “This reflects China’s firm confidence in its own governance model. China’s long-term development orientation enables it to look beyond short-term turbulence.”

[^1] Real Economy: The real economy refers to ==all economic activities such as the production and circulation of material and spiritual products, including agriculture, industry, service industry, education, culture and other fields, which is the basis for the survival and development of human society==. It is opposite to the virtual economy. The virtual economy (such as financial speculation) is virtual capital activity based on the real economy, while participants in the real economy focus on economic activities that meet real needs.

Published at: Oct 27, 2025 · Modified at: Jan 15, 2026