On October 29th, Ambassador Ren Hongyan published a signed article titled "Planning for the Future: The Successful Experience of China’s Development" in mainstream media of Trinidad and Tobago, including The Guardian and The Daily Express, introducing the spirit of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, providing an in-depth explanation of China's development achievements during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the successful experience of using medium- and long-term planning to guide economic and social development, and the new opportunities the 15th Five-Year Plan brings to China-Trinidad and Tobago cooperation. The full text is as follows:
The 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) convened its fourth plenary session in Beijing from October 20 to 23, 2025. The meeting reviewed and adopted the Recommendations of CPC Central Committee for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development, systematically summarizing the achievements of the previous Five-Year Plan and outlining a grand blueprint for China’s economic and social development over the next five years.
I. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China achieved new pioneering progress, breakthrough transformations, and historic accomplishments in its economic and social development.
The recently concluded 14th Five-Year Plan period was an exceptionally significant five years in the course of China’s development. In the face of a complicated international landscape and the challenging domestic tasks of advancing reform, promoting development, and ensuring stability, China’s economic and social development achieved new pioneering progress, breakthrough transformations, and historic accomplishments.
——Sustained Enhancement of Economic Strength. The total economic output has surpassed 130 trillion RMB, and is expected to reach approximately 140 trillion RMB by 2025, with a contribution rate to global economic growth maintaining at around 30%. The total value of import and export of goods trade increased from 32.2 trillion RMB to 43.8 trillion RMB, while final consumption contributed an average of 56.2% to economic growth.
——Strong Momentum in Technological Innovation. Total R&D expenditure remains the second highest in the world, becoming the top ten of the Global Innovation Index for the first time. Major national equipment, including the domestically produced C919 large aircraft and large cruise ships, made their debut, a number of key core technologies achieved breakthroughs, and emerging industries continued to grow.
——Significant Improvement in People’s Well-being. The world’s largest education, social security, and healthcare systems were established. Residents’ average life expectancy reached 79 years. Urban new employment remained stable above 12 million annually. More than 11 million units of affordable housing were secured. Achievements in poverty alleviation were consolidated and expanded. And the rural revitalization strategy was comprehensively implemented.
——Marked Improvement in the Ecological Environment. The world’s largest renewable energy system was built. Production and sales of electric vehicles have ranked first globally for ten consecutive years; energy consumption per unit of GDP decreased cumulatively by 11.6%, equivalent to a reduction of 1.1 billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions. Significant progress was made in building a Beautiful China.
——Reform and opening-up were comprehensively deepened. The negative list for market access has been reduced to 106 items. The market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized business environment has continued to improve. The island-wide independent customs operation in Hainan Free Trade Port has been launched. The high-level opening-up is being accelerated and the high-quality Belt and Road Initiative cooperation is being advanced.
II. Using Medium- and Long-Term Plans to Guide China’s Economic and Social Development Is a Key Governance Approach of CPC
The reason China has been able to continuously promote economic development and social progress through successive Five-Year Plan periods lies in a set of effective governance wisdom. Employing medium- and long-term plans to guide economic and social development is a key governance approach of CPC and a crucial political advantage of the Socialism with Chinese Characteristics. Within this, several experiences merit sharing:
First, maintain strategic resolve and continuity in decision-making. The long-term development of a nation requires a clear direction and persistent endeavor. China’s practice shows that a widely recognized and scientifically formulated development strategy can overcome short-term fluctuations and disturbances, ensuring that the state steadily advances toward its established objectives. CPC, as the strong leadership core, plays a crucial role in formulating and promoting the Five-Year Plans. Through scientific decision-making and top-level design, it ensures that the Five-Year Plans align closely with the times, embody the will of the people, and safeguard long-term interests.
Second, emphasize concentrating efforts to accomplish major tasks. Facing key tasks and significant challenges in the development process, the effective concentration of resources to form synergy is the indispensable guarantee for swiftly overcoming bottlenecks and achieving breakthroughs. The planning system led by the Five-Year Plan is established, decomposing the national overall objectives into multiple sub-goals across different levels and categories, fully mobilizing resources and forces from all sectors to form a unified national effort, thereby accomplishing many pivotal matters relating to the national economy and people’s livelihood.
Third, adhere to carrying out the set blueprint until it becomes reality. Development can not be accomplished overnight. China’s planning system emphasizes both inheriting from the past and continuous efforts into the future. Each round of planning not only consolidates and elevates the achievements of the preceding Five-Year Plan but also lays the foundation and charts the course for the next stage of development. This spirit of ‘carrying out the set blueprint until it becomes reality’ ensures the continuity and progressive advancement of the national development strategy, enabling long-term visions to be gradually realized through the accumulation of phased objectives.
The above experiences, rooted in China’s national conditions and practice, fundamentally lie in achieving the unity of development efficiency and stability through the integration of scientific top-level design and broad social participation, offering valuable reference for advancing the modernization of governance.
III. China’s development will bring broad opportunities to the world
Development is the enduring theme of a nation's prosperity and progress. During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, China will place greater emphasis on high-quality development, build a modern industrial system, lead the formation of new quality productive forces, accelerate the establishment of a new development pattern, earnestly advance comprehensive rural revitalization, promote coordinated regional development, accelerate the comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development, continuously enhance people’s well-being, and expand opening-up at a higher level. This is not only a road map for China’s own modernization, but also provides broader prospects for deepening China’s cooperation with countries worldwide, including Trinidad and Tobago.
Although I have been in Trinidad and Tobago for only two months, I have observed that this is a nation full of potential and hope. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, the government of Trinidad and Tobago is striving to advance the country’s modernization process. Even though China and Trinidad and Tobago are geographically distant and the two nations have different conditions and realities, both of them belong to the Global South. The peoples share a strong yearning for a better life, and the governments of both countries actively implement the people-centered development philosophy.
As a trusted friend and reliable partner of Trinidad and Tobago, China will regard the 15th Five-Year Plan as a new starting point, focus on advancing the Five Programs for building a China–Latin America and Caribbean Community with a Shared Future — solidarity, development, civilization, peace, and people-to-people connectivity, which is proposed by President Xi Jinping, maintain close dialogue and exchanges with the Trinidad and Tobago, enhance the alignment of development strategies, broaden areas of common interests, and jointly advance along the path of shared prosperity and progress to create a brighter future.
