Introduction:

The blue book’s General Report reviews major achievements in China’s social development during the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016—2020) and sheds light on potential problems and future challenges. Moreover, the document includes a summary of the COVID-19 epidemic, from major impacts to positive results achieved in epidemic prevention and control under the leadership of the Communist Party of China.

According to the blue book, over the past five years, the Chinese economy has entered the stage of high-quality development as the incomes of urban and rural residents rose significantly and the quality of life and consumption levels improved continuously. Progress was also made in employment, education, rural development, medical care, ecological conservation and the new type of urbanization.

Despite stable economic and social development, the blue book notes several problems and challenges. For example, the problem of imbalanced and inadequate development remains prominent, and reform tasks are still daunting in key links of important fields.