China’s Third Plenum Explained
One of the most important meetings on the Chinese political calendar, the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), has just wrapped up. So what was decided and why is it important?
What is the Third Plenum?
China has a major national congress every five years. One of the most important moments during the Congress is the election of the Central Committee - this is essentially the governing body of China between the convening of different Congresses. The current Central Committee was elected at the last Congress in 2022.
The Central Committee will usually host 7 big meetings, called plenums, in the 5 year gap between Congress. These meetings are for Central Committee members to discuss and vote on different issues facing China.
Traditionally, the third plenum deals with major economic issues - for example, it is the decisions made at the third plenum in December 1978 that is usually considered the beginning of China’s Reform and Opening period.
What Was Decided At the Third Plenum?
This year’s third plenum was attended by 199 members and 165 alternative members of the Central Committee. Also in attendance were several leading department officials who sat as non-voting members.
The major economic and social goals for China to achieve by 2035 were set out in the third plenum communique. These were:
To finish building a high-standard socialist market economy in all respects
To further improve the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics
To generally modernize the system and capacity of governance
To basically realize socialist modernization
But what will this mean in practice?
What Does It Mean?
The big take-away from the third plenum is a commitment to continuity. China has a plan for economic development, and the Central Committee believes that this plan is working. What remains for the government, then, is to refine and perfect that plan while inoculating China against what the communique calls “black swan” events: unexpected global shocks like the Covid-19 Pandemic.
One of the major areas of focus is the uneven development and regional inequality within China. The third plenum wants to facilitate a more even economic development and reduce rural poverty. This will not come as a surprise to anyone who has followed Chinese politics closely since Xi Jinping has made poverty alleviation and reduction of regional inequality one of the hallmarks of his presidency. Policy proposals include giving local, regional, and municipal governments more autonomy in the regulation of industry, such as real estate, and putting more fiscal resources at the disposal of local government. There is also a plan to remove all remaining barriers to accessing social security in an area where people do not have residency - a policy clearly aimed at China’s vast migrant labor force.
Another area of focus is the continuing development of science and technology. This plan for development is important for the economy, but the third plenum also underlined the national security implications of having a strong, independent science and technology sector. In the next couple of years, we are likely to see more money put into the sector in an effort to raise wages and improve conditions for workers. There is also an emphasis placed on STEM education as a way to cultivate the next generation of Chinese scientists.
Finally, the third plenum focuses on the modernization and improvement of the capacity of China’s governance system. The way China is planning to do this is to further strengthen the mechanism for consultative democracy within the framework of socialism with Chinese characteristics. What this means is that there are going to be efforts to make government more responsive to everyday people, and to decentralize and localize certain aspects of decision-making.
The third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC is clearly very aware that we live in an ever-changing and increasingly unstable world. Going forward the aim appears to be to protect China from unforeseen shocks as much as possible, while staying committed to the Chinese plan for development.
Further Reading
Analysis of the Third Plenum and the current Chinese economic situation
Page Editor: Jin Yulin
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