Political advisors suggest fine-tuning during 2016-2020 plan

BEIJING -- China's top political advisors held a national conference on Monday and Tuesday, proposing various reforms be included in the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-2020) to stimulate sustainable growth.

The 13th Five-Year Plan is set to be a key period for China's goal of building a comprehensively well-off society.

Five-year plans have been drafted since 1953 to map strategies for economic and social development, setting growth targets and defining development policies.

China should focus on fine-tuning and structural adjustment of the macro-economy, preventing the volatility that comes with abrupt policy switches, said Li Yining, a Standing Committee member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and a top Chinese economist.

The government should create a more fair and open environment in the "New Normal" era of plateauing economic growth, give the market a more decisive role, encourage innovation and entrepreneurship while implementing de-leveraging to consolidate the real economy, said Guo Zhenjia, also a Standing Committee member of the CPPCC.

Some advisors pointed out that small and medium-sized enterprises still struggle for financing, and recommended deepened reform of the financial system to boost the real economy.

Others said regions inhabited by ethnic groups should be able to adapt measures to suit local conditions, increase their self-sufficiency and make full use of central authorities' preferential policies.