Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, April 21st-the State Council Press Office published a white paper entitled "China Youth in the New Era" on April 21st. The full text is as follows:
China Youth in the New Era
(April 2022)
People’s Republic of China (PRC)
the State Council Information Office
catalogue
foreword
First, in the new era, young people in China will meet the prosperous times and share opportunities.
(A) have higher quality development conditions
(2) Get more opportunities to shine in life.
(3) Enjoy more comprehensive support.
Second, the quality of young people in China in the new era is excellent and all-round development
(A) more firm ideals and beliefs
(B) physical and mental quality to the good to the strong
(C) continuous improvement of knowledge literacy
(D) Active social participation
Third, in the new era, young people in China bravely shoulder heavy burdens and are worthy of great responsibilities
(A) in the ordinary post struggle and dedication
(2) Charge ahead in urgent and dangerous tasks.
(3) being honed at the grassroots level.
(D) in the forefront of innovation and entrepreneurship.
(5) Leading the trend in the construction of social civilization.
Fourth, in the new era, young people in China are open to the world and show their responsibility.
(A) more open and confident to integrate into the world
(2) Show the youthful responsibility of building a community of human destiny.
(iii) Global Action Initiative for China Youth.
Concluding remarks
foreword
Youth is the most active and dynamic force in the whole social force, the hope of the country lies in youth, and the future of the nation lies in youth. The youth in China have always been the vanguard force to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
After modern times, China gradually became a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, with the country humiliated, the people suffering and the civilization dusty. The Chinese nation suffered an unprecedented disaster, and the young people in China deeply felt the increasingly serious national crisis.
The awakening of the youth in China has ignited the light of hope for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Before and after the May 4th Movement, a large number of aspiring young people who took the lead in accepting new ideas, new cultures and new knowledge chose Marxism–Leninism after repeated comparisons, which promoted the people of China and the Chinese nation to realize their first comprehensive awakening since the Opium War. In July 1921, 13 delegates with an average age of only 28 attended the first National Congress in communist party, China, which declared the birth of the Communist Party of China (CPC), a groundbreaking event, sounded the clarion call for the awakening and rise of the whole nation, and opened a new era of national rejuvenation. Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the Communist Youth League of China was established in 1922, and the youth movement in China opened a new chapter in history.
Looking back on the past century, no matter how changeable the situation is, the sincere pursuit of China youth to love the party, patriotism and people has never changed, and the initial loyalty of unswervingly listening to and following the party has never changed. During the new-democratic revolution, young people in China were not afraid of sacrifice, dared to struggle, stood the test of life and death, and fought for national independence and people’s liberation. During the period of socialist revolution and construction, young people in China are brave in struggle and willing to contribute. They have withstood the test of bitterness and joy, and have worked selflessly and made great efforts in the vast world of new China. In the new era of reform, opening up and socialist modernization, young people in China are pioneering and innovative, bravely standing at the forefront, enduring the test of gains and losses, and are determined to reform and strive for progress in order to push China to catch up with the times.
Since the 18th CPC National Congress, Socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era. The CPC Central Committee with the Supreme Leader as the core attaches great importance to the youth, cares for the youth with enthusiasm, fully trusts the youth, clearly puts forward the principle of the party’s management of the youth, vigorously advocates the concept of giving priority to the development of the youth, exerts its efforts to play the role of the Communist Youth League as the party’s assistant and reserve army, and promotes the all-round progress and historic achievements in the cause of youth development. In this great new era, young people in China have shown their brilliant youthful demeanor and generate’s heroic youthful passion.
In the new era, young people in China are vigorous, confident, ambitious and promising, sincerely support the party’s leadership, strive to be at the forefront of the times, and show unprecedented high-spirited features: pursuing lofty ideals, with lofty beliefs in Marxism and firm beliefs in communism and Socialism with Chinese characteristics engraved in their hearts; Deeply rooted in the feelings of home and country, breathing with the country and sharing the fate with the people, always showing a distinctive patriotic spirit; Inherit the responsibility of struggle, worry about the world first, enjoy the world later, and be brave to be a pioneer, pioneer and devotee who walks in the forefront of the times.
History clearly and profoundly shows that without the Communist Party of China (CPC), there would be no vigorous youth movement in China, and unswervingly following the Party is the most precious experience of China youth’s century-long struggle, and the red gene deeply integrated into the blood is the most precious wealth of China youth’s century-long struggle.
On July 1st, 2021, General Secretary of the Supreme Leader sent a deep message at the celebration of the centenary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC): "The young people in China in the new era should take the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation as their own responsibility, enhance their ambition, backbone and confidence to be Chinese, and live up to the times, youth and ardent expectations of the party and the people!"
Looking ahead, the great cause of national rejuvenation has stood at a new historical starting point and embarked on a new great journey. In the new era, young people in China have a rare opportunity to realize their ambitions and display their talents, and shoulder the important task of building a socialist modernization power and realizing the Chinese dream of great rejuvenation.
The Chinese dream is historical, realistic and future; It belongs to the broad masses of people, but also to the younger generation. In the new era, young people in China will turn the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation into reality with a never-ending mental state and a never-ending forward posture.
In order to fully display the style and responsibility of China youth in the new era, this white paper is issued on the occasion of the centenary of the founding of the Communist Youth League of China.
First, in the new era, young people in China will meet the prosperous times and share opportunities.
Times make young people, and prosperous times make young people. China in the new era is prosperous and full of hope. The Chinese nation has ushered in a great leap from standing up, becoming rich and becoming strong, and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process. In the new era, young people in China meet the best period of the development of the Chinese nation, have a better development environment and a broader growth space, and are faced with a rare life opportunity to make contributions.
(A) have higher quality development conditions
With China’s economic strength, scientific and technological strength and comprehensive national strength constantly reaching a new level and making a new leap, the development foundation of young people in China in the new era is getting stronger and stronger.
The material development environment is more advantageous. The high-quality development of young people is based on material abundance. China has created "two miracles" of rapid economic development and long-term social stability, which are rare in the world. In 2021, its GDP exceeded 110 trillion yuan, ranking second in the world. More than 25 million poor young people have been completely lifted out of poverty, and the young people in China are moving towards a higher level of well-off life. Young people in China yearn for a better life with higher quality. The consumption mode has changed from popularization to individualization, and the consumption demand has changed from satisfying survival to enjoying life, from being clothed to being fashionable and wearing personality, from being full to being rich and healthy, and from being able to travel to being fast, smooth, stable and comfortable. The living standards of young people in China have achieved a qualitative leap, and high-quality development has a richer and more solid material foundation.
There is more room for spiritual growth. The high-quality development of young people is inseparable from the colorful spiritual life. Benefiting from the continuous improvement of public cultural facilities such as libraries, museums, cultural centers and art galleries that benefit young people, the level of public cultural services enjoyed by young people in China has been significantly improved, gradually changing from "being fresh everywhere" to "being used to everywhere", and their spiritual taste has been continuously improved. With the rapid development of traditional cultural industries such as books, television, movies, theatrical performances, and emerging cultural industries such as digital creativity, online audio-visual, digital publishing, digital entertainment, and online broadcasting, the public cultural products that young people need and look forward to are increasingly rich, gradually changing from "seeing what they want" to "seeing what they want", and their cultural horizons are broader. Cultural tourism, rural tourism, red tourism, international tourism and other kinds of tourism products are available, and the needs of young people to go out and see the world are better met, and they gradually change from "just walking around at home" to "going anywhere", and their knowledge and experience are more extensive. The expanding space of spiritual and cultural life provides more possibilities for China youth to pursue a higher, better and more tasteful life.
Grow up in the mutual shaping with the internet. The Internet has profoundly shaped the youth, and the youth has also profoundly influenced the Internet. By the end of 2020, there were 180 million Internet users of minors aged 6 to 18 in China, and the Internet penetration rate of minors reached 94.9%. The gap between urban and rural penetration rates narrowed from 5.4 percentage points in 2018 to 0.3 percentage points, and the Internet has become an indispensable lifestyle, growth space and "sixth sense officer" for contemporary teenagers. With the rapid popularization of the Internet, more and more young people have convenient access to information, exchange ideas, make friends and interact with each other, and spend money on shopping, and their study, life and work styles have undergone profound changes. In online video (short video), online live broadcast and online car users, young people are the main body. Young people in China are increasingly becoming the main information producers, service consumers and technology promoters in cyberspace, which has deeply influenced the development trend of the Internet. Facing the complicated network information, China youth actively promote positive energy and show new fashions on the Internet, and jointly create a clear cyberspace.
(2) Get more opportunities to shine in life.
If the country is good, the youth will be good. With the rapid development of economy and society, young people in China in the new era have gained more opportunities for development, and the stage for achieving brilliant life has become wider and wider.
Educational opportunities are more equal. The priority development of education in China is deepening, and young people in China enjoy more equal and higher quality education opportunities. In 2021, the consolidation rate of compulsory education in China reached 95.4%; The gross enrollment rate in senior high school reached 91.4%; The gross enrollment rate of higher education is 57.8%, and the total number of students is 44.3 million, ranking first in the world. More and more young people have opened an important path to success. The student financial aid policy system covering pre-school education to postgraduate education has been established and is becoming more and more perfect. In 2020, the total funding will exceed 240 billion yuan and nearly 150 million students will be funded, achieving "three full coverage". The right to education of migrant children of migrant workers, students from rural and poverty-stricken areas and other groups in the compulsory education stage is fully guaranteed. In 2020, 85.8% of the migrant children of migrant workers will attend public schools or enjoy government-purchased degree services; From 2012 to 2021, more than 820,000 students were enrolled in the special enrollment plan of key universities in rural and poverty-stricken areas, so that more young people can enjoy the opportunity to receive better education fairly and block the intergenerational transmission of poverty.
Career choices are rich and diverse. China youth’s career choices are becoming more and more market-oriented, diversified and autonomous, and they no longer only favor the traditional "iron rice bowl". Non-public economic organizations and new social organizations have gradually become the main channels for youth employment. The employment choice of "non-work is agriculture" is gone forever, and the tertiary industry has become an important field to attract youth employment. In 2020, employment in the tertiary industry accounted for 47.7%, an increase of 13.1 percentage points over a decade ago. Especially in recent years, the rapid rise of new industries and new formats has spawned a large number of new occupations, such as e-sports players, network anchors, network writers, etc., and gathered a large number of young people with flexible employment, such as courier brothers and take-away riders, and emerged "slash youth" with multiple identities and occupations and a variety of jobs and lifestyles, which fully embodies the more opportunities and choices given to young people by the times.
Development, smooth flow and freedom. With the continuous improvement of the socialist market economic system, the vitality of market players has been continuously improved, and the flow of various factors has become increasingly frequent, and the development channels of young people have become smoother and more free. Under the background of the in-depth implementation of the regional coordinated development strategy, the youth in China have gradually changed from a one-way "peacock flying southeast" to a multi-directional "flying freely", looking for development opportunities in their favorite cities and expanding their growth stage in areas suitable for them. Groups of rural youths entered the city, sweating and struggling, settling down and realizing their dreams. In 2020, the total number of migrant workers is nearly 170 million, most of whom are young people; The urbanization rate of young permanent residents reached 71.1%, which was 15.3 percentage points higher than that of ten years ago and 7.2 percentage points higher than that of the overall permanent population. More young people better integrated into urban life and achieved development leap through the development flow between urban and rural areas.
(3) Enjoy more comprehensive support.
The development of youth can not be separated from the solid guarantee of the country. Under the background that social fairness and justice are constantly highlighted and people’s development rights and interests are effectively safeguarded, young people in China in the new era have a better legal environment, stronger policy support, more reliable social security and warmer organizational care.
The guarantee of the rule of law has been continuously improved. With the deepening of comprehensively administering the country according to law, the rule of law system in Socialism with Chinese characteristics is improving day by day, which provides a solid guarantee for the development of youth. As the fundamental law of the country, the Constitution clearly stipulates that "the state trains young people, teenagers and children to develop in an all-round way in morality, intelligence and physique", which provides a fundamental basis for the establishment of a legal guarantee system for young people. Youth development involves a wide range and is systematic, and it requires concerted efforts from all fields. The Civil Code gives young people all kinds of civil rights and interests. The education law, compulsory education law, vocational education law, higher education law, private education promotion law, family education promotion law, etc. have comprehensively built a complete legal environment to protect young people’s right to education. The employment promotion law, labor law, labor contract law, social insurance law, scientific and technological progress law, population and family planning law, sports law, and women’s rights and interests protection law have fully guaranteed the development rights and interests of young people in all fields. Criminal law, juvenile protection law, prevention law, etc.
Policy support is becoming more and more complete. In view of the diversified development needs of China youth, the state has strengthened the policy service orientation and improved the policy system. The "Thirteenth Five-Year Plan" and "Fourteenth Five-Year Plan" for national economic and social development clearly reflect the elements of youth. Major national strategies such as rejuvenating the country through science and education, strengthening the country through talents, innovation-driven development, rural revitalization and healthy China pay full attention to youth groups, and youth development is supported by more and more top-level designs. In April, 2017, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council formulated the first national-level special plan for youth in the history of New China — — The Medium and Long-term Youth Development Plan (2016-2025) provides fundamental policy guidance for the youth development in China in the new era. In view of the worries and troubles of young people in job hunting, innovation and entrepreneurship, social integration, marriage and friendship, support for the elderly and children’s education, the party and the government attach great importance to it, and various policies and measures have been continuously introduced, and the construction of youth-oriented cities has flourished, and the concept of giving priority to youth development has become increasingly popular. At present, the youth working mechanism from the central government to the local government has been basically established, and the youth development policy system with China characteristics has initially taken shape. Young people fully enjoy the policy dividend, and they really feel that care is around and care is in sight.
Social security is more perfect. China has built the largest social security system in the world, and the inclusive social security service has further developed. Young people in China can not only enjoy the "shelter from the wind and rain" of social security at the beginning of entering the society, but also get rid of all kinds of "worries" when they struggle hard, so that they can live more comfortably, work more securely and feel more at ease about the future. The government has issued a series of policies to support multi-channel flexible employment, gradually improving the social security for flexible employment and supporting young people to engage in flexible employment. The security of youth housing has been continuously strengthened, and more big cities have increased the supply of affordable rental housing for new citizens and young people to alleviate the housing problems of youth. The basic old-age insurance has achieved national overall planning, unemployment insurance and industrial injury insurance have continued to expand coverage to young professional workers, and the level of social security for young people has continuously reached a new level.
The organizational guarantee is strong. Organization is a melting pot of youth growth and a multiplier of youth development. As a group organization of advanced youth led by the Communist Party of China (CPC), the Communist Youth League of China has always attached great importance to safeguarding the rights and interests of youth development, made great efforts to implement the concept of giving priority to youth development, gave full play to its organizational advantages, vigorously mobilized social resources, focused on outstanding problems of youth’s "urgent difficulties and worries" and carried out policy advocacy, doing everything possible to solve specific difficulties for young people and create a good environment for their growth and development. As one of the basic people’s organizations under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, all-china youth federation always insists on representing and safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of young people from all walks of life, guiding young people to actively and healthily participate in social life, and striving to serve the healthy growth and success of young people. As a joint organization of China higher education student union, graduate student union and secondary school student union under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, the All-China Student Union expresses and safeguards the specific interests of young students in accordance with the articles of association, and strives to serve the growth and development of young students by carrying out healthy, beneficial and colorful extracurricular activities and social services.
Second, the quality of young people in China in the new era is excellent and all-round development
Strive to hone your skills and sharpen your talents. In the new era, young people in China actively learn theory, culture, science and skills, and their ideological quality, physical quality, spiritual character and comprehensive ability are constantly improved, striving to grow into new people of the times who can shoulder the heavy responsibility of national rejuvenation.
(A) more firm ideals and beliefs
Ideal guides the direction of life, and faith determines the success or failure of career. In the new era, young people in China take the establishment of correct ideals and firm beliefs as their foundation, and strive to grow into aspiring young people expected by the party, the country and the people.
Firmly believe in China road. Through historical comparison, international comparison, social observation and personal practice, young people in China have deeply understood the key role of the Party’s leadership, leadership, institutional advantages and people’s power. A survey in 2020 shows that the vast majority of young people sincerely agree with the road of Socialism with Chinese characteristics and are full of confidence in realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Armed with the Supreme Leader’s Socialism with Chinese characteristics Thought in the New Era, the young people in China have deeply felt the "China Speed", "China Miracle" and "China Rule" in a series of vivid examples, objective figures and personal experiences showing the country’s development achievements, and their ambition, backbone and confidence to be Chinese have been further enhanced, and their ideological foundation for United struggle to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and the Chinese dream has become more solid.
Stick to the pursuit of value. The value orientation of youth determines the value orientation of the whole society in the future. China youth take the initiative to "button up the first button in life", feel the moral demeanor from the hero model and the model of the times, actively advocate prosperity, democracy, civilization and harmony, freedom, equality, justice, the rule of law, patriotism, professionalism, honesty and friendliness, and become the practitioners and promoters of socialist core values. A large number of outstanding young people have become role models for the whole society to learn from. More than 1,500 winners of the May 4th Medal of Chinese Youth have led the social atmosphere, and "outstanding Communist Youth League members" at all levels have played a vanguard and exemplary role, and more than 20,000 "upward-oriented and good young people" have shown the positive energy of youth. In the face of the exchange of social thoughts, China youth are confused and confused, but one main line has never changed, that is, sincere love for the party and the country and unremitting pursuit of lofty values.
Strengthen cultural self-confidence. Culture is the spirit and soul of a nation, and a high degree of cultural self-confidence is an important foundation for realizing national rejuvenation. Young people in China constantly draw nutrients from Chinese excellent traditional culture, revolutionary culture and advanced socialist culture, and pay special attention to gaining strength from Chinese civilization with a long history. According to a survey conducted in 2020, over 80% of the young people interviewed believe that the reason for the "craze for Chinese studies among teenagers" is that "Chinese people begin to pay attention to the intrinsic value of traditional culture". From being keen on "foreign brands" to "national fashion", from favoring "bell bottoms" to "national clothes" leading the fashion, from pursuing "break dancing" to "only being green" being popular all over the country, the young people in China sincerely worship and identify with the splendid civilization of the Chinese nation, inherit Chinese cultural genes more consciously, and their national pride is significantly enhanced, thus promoting the whole society to form a strong cultural self-confidence atmosphere.
(B) physical and mental quality to the good to the strong
Young people are strong, and China is strong. Strong physique and sunny mentality are important prerequisites for young people to grow into talents. The excellent quality of young people in China in the new era is reflected in their better and stronger physical and mental qualities, and their ability to withstand wind and rain, temper and beatings.
Physical fitness continues to improve. On campus, with the continuous increase of physical education classes, more young students "civilize their spirit" in the classroom and "savage their physique" on the playground. More than 37 million rural compulsory education students have benefited from the government’s student nutrition improvement plan, and their physical fitness has been significantly improved. In 2018, the pass rate of physical fitness test for young students aged 14 to 19 reached 91.9%, and the excellent and good rate continued to rise. In the community, young people actively participate in all kinds of mass sports. Running, swimming and various ball games have become the sports fashion of young people, and sports and fitness venues are "crowded". The Beijing Winter Olympics has aroused the enthusiasm of young people in China for ice and snow sports. Young people aged 18 to 30 have become the main force to participate in ice and snow sports, with a participation rate of 37.3%, the highest among all ages. In the arena, China’s young people have always been active in international events such as the Olympic Games and the Asian Games. Young athletes have vigorously promoted the Chinese sports spirit and the spirit of women’s volleyball, and explained to the world "Faster, higher and stronger — — The new Olympic motto "More United" shows the strong national spirit of China youth. Young people in China pay attention to sports, participate in sports and enjoy sports, which has become an active pioneering force in the construction of a sports power.
Psychological quality, self-confidence, optimism. Young people in China start from the side and small things, and strive to transform their firm ideals and beliefs, healthy value cognition and firm cultural self-confidence into a good social mentality. Although there is still a lot of pressure in the fields of employment, education, housing, marriage and pension, with the concern of the Party and the government and the common support of the whole society, the young people in China are not depressed in the face of difficulties, and the more tenacious they are in the face of pressure. According to a survey in 2021, 88.0% of the young people interviewed think they can be "masters of emotions". Confidence and fighting spirit for future development and yearning for a better life occupy the mainstream of China youth, and self-confidence, optimism and positive attitude are the distinctive images of China youth.
(C) continuous improvement of knowledge literacy
Knowledge changes fate and education changes life. Taking advantage of the east wind of giving priority to the development of education, young people in China witnessed and experienced the historic achievements in education in the new era, enjoyed a fairer and higher quality education, further improved their initiative and consciousness in learning, and advanced their scientific and cultural literacy to a new level.
The level of education has been greatly improved. With the support of national strategies such as rejuvenating the country through science and education and strengthening the country through talents, hundreds of millions of young people in China have gained opportunities to grow into talents through education, realizing their desire to create a better life and highlight the value of life. In 2020, the average number of years of education for newly-added laborers will reach 13.8, 1.1 years higher than that of ten years ago; On-the-job young people with college degree or above account for more than 50% of the total employed population with the same education level, which is about 20 percentage points higher than that of on-the-job young people. Improving academic level and receiving high-quality education are still the main ways for China youth to change their destiny, pursue their dreams and realize their life ideals.
Loving learning has gradually become a fashion. More and more young people regard learning as a pleasure in life and a pursuit of life, and the social atmosphere of learning and upgrading is getting stronger and stronger. A considerable number of young people choose to continue their studies and improve their academic qualifications after leaving campus. In 2020, there will be more than 7.7 million students in adult colleges and 8.4 million students in online colleges. The enthusiasm of young people to learn professional skills on the job is unprecedented. The survey shows that more than 50% of social youth have participated in vocational skills training, and "recharging" and "refueling" after work have become the common choice of more and more young people. Benefiting from the rapid development of online media, tens of millions of young people choose courses and acquire knowledge through "massive open online course" (large-scale open online courses).
(D) Active social participation
Society is an important classroom for the growth and development of young people. In the new era, young people in China adapt to society, integrate into society and participate in the process of social development with a more confident attitude and a more active spirit, showing positive awareness and ability of social participation and becoming advocates and practitioners of positive energy.
Participate in political life in an orderly manner. China youth pursue political progress and actively participate in the people’s democratic practice in the whole process. The lofty ideal of communism has always inspired young people to forge ahead and strive for progress, and the willingness of young people to join the Communist Youth League of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and China continues to rise. By June 2021, there were 23.679 million people aged 35 and under in party member, accounting for 24.9% of the total in party member. Since The 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the proportion of party member aged 35 and under in newly developed party member has exceeded 80% every year. By the end of 2021, the total number of Communist Youth League members had reached 73.715 million. Young people widely participate in people’s congresses and CPPCC at all levels, actively perform their duties and participate in the discussion of state affairs. In 2019, young and middle-aged representatives and members of county-level people’s congresses and CPPCC accounted for 10.9% and 13.7% respectively. Young people actively participate in all kinds of democratic elections, decision-making, management and supervision, make suggestions on major issues of economic and social development, fully exercise their democratic rights, conduct extensive consultations and strive to reach a consensus on practical issues concerning the vital interests of young people.
Actively participate in social affairs. In recent years, more and more young people enthusiastically participate in social affairs such as charity, community service, ecological protection, cultural communication, providing for the aged and helping the disabled, which not only play an important role in many influential social organizations, but also set up a number of social organizations characterized by voluntary establishment, self-management and self-service. At present, there are more than 7,600 county-level voluntary service, literature, art and sports youth social organizations under the guidance of the Communist Youth League, which has led to the establishment of more than 150,000 youth activity groups, basically achieving full county coverage. China youth make full use of these important channels of social participation, and play a constructive role in undertaking the transfer of government functions according to law, developing industry self-discipline, meeting the diversified service needs of the public, advocating a civilized and healthy lifestyle, and promoting communication between the government and society, showing a strong sense of participation and social responsibility.
Third, in the new era, young people in China bravely shoulder heavy burdens and are worthy of great responsibilities
Socialism with Chinese characteristics’s new era is a great era in which young people can and will make great achievements. In the new era, young people in China strive to be active promoters of high-quality economic development, active participants in the construction of socialist democratic politics, active creators of the prosperity of socialist culture, active practitioners of social civilization and progress, and active builders of beautiful China. They are striving hard and courageously striving for the first place in the new journey of realizing the goal of the second century and building a socialist modern power.
(A) in the ordinary post struggle and dedication
In the new era, young people in China adhere to the glorious tradition of "eternal struggle", regard ordinary posts as the stage for achieving their lives, work hard to promote social development, national rejuvenation and people’s happiness, and strive for a bright China with their own hands.
Whether it is the traditional "workers, peasants, businessmen, soldiers", "science, education, culture and health", or the new format, new fields and new occupations based on "internet plus", young people make the ordinary great, turn the impossible into the possible, and imprint the spirit of struggle in ordinary posts in all walks of life. In the front line of the factory workshop, young workers practice their skills, strive for perfection, screw every screw and weld every joint well, strive to be "young post experts" and let "Made in China" go global; In the fields, young farmers ploughed hard and intensively, used science and technology to increase grain production and increase land efficiency, and strived to firmly hold Chinese’s rice bowl in their own hands; On the construction site, young migrant workers are not afraid of hard work, day and night, building tall buildings with bricks and tiles to decorate the city more beautifully; On the training ground, young athletes trained hard and struggled tenaciously, and charged the world summit with excellent style and amazing perseverance, so that the five-star red flag fluttered high in the international arena; In the streets and alleys of the city, courier brothers and take-away riders come in the wind and go in the rain, conveying happiness and warmth to thousands of families. With hard work and sweat, they vividly show the overall style of China youth’s "having no worries about food and clothing, but not forgetting hardships, and staying quiet for years without losing their struggle", so that youth can shine in the struggle of ordinary posts.
(2) Charge ahead in urgent and dangerous tasks.
In the new era, young people in China are not afraid of difficulties and hardships, and they show their spirit in times of crisis. When they see the truth at critical moments, they can always stand up when the motherland and people need it, consciously shoulder their responsibilities, make selfless contributions, and move forward fearlessly, demonstrating the enterprising spirit and responsibility that the younger generation should have.
In the major projects that embody comprehensive national strength and carry forward national aspirations, in the face of major natural disasters and in response to sudden public crises, the figure of young people has always stood at the forefront. The flags of "Youth Commando" and "Youth Attack Team" are flying everywhere, whether in strategic engineering sites such as West-to-East Gas Transmission, West-to-East Power Transmission, South-to-North Water Diversion and East-to-West Calculation, or in landmark project sites such as Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, Beijing Daxing International Airport and Hualong No.1 nuclear power unit. Since the outbreak of the epidemic in COVID-19, young people have braved hardships, rushed ahead and risked their lives to forget their lives. More than 320,000 youth commandos and 5.5 million young people have fought in the first line of fighting against the epidemic, such as medical rescue, transportation and logistics, and project construction, making great contributions to winning the people’s war, overall war and blocking war for epidemic prevention and control. Among the 28,600 nurses in the medical aid team in Hubei, "post-80s" and "post-90s" account for 90%. On the construction sites of Wuhan Huoshen Mountain and Thunder God Mountain hospital, 13 youth commandos were formed by young builders, accounting for 60% of the total. With iron will and courage to overcome difficulties, they fought hard and contributed to the forefront, creating a miracle of construction that amazed the world. Facts have proved that young people in China can withstand difficulties and setbacks, critical moments and risk challenges.
(3) being honed at the grassroots level.
In the new era, young people in China regard grassroots as the best classroom, practice as the best teacher, integrate the "small goal" of personal struggle into the "big blueprint" of the cause of the party and the country, turn their pursuit of the Chinese dream into practical things around them, and grow their talents and strengthen their bones and muscles through tempering.
Solve problems for the villagers in the countryside, serve the neighbors wholeheartedly in the community, and patrol the border for the motherland in the frontier … … More and more young people go deep into the grass roots, devote themselves to the places where modernization is most needed, and achieve life in a complex and difficult environment. In 2021, among the 1,981 national advanced individuals and 1,501 advanced collectives commended by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council, there are many advanced models of young people. More than 1,800 comrades have fixed their lives on the journey of getting rid of poverty, many of whom are young faces. In the implementation of rural revitalization strategy, young people lead professional cooperatives, popularize modern agricultural science and technology, expand new industries and formats in rural areas, take the lead in changing customs, improve rural living environment, advocate civilized rural customs, drive farmers to increase their income and become rich, and help rural areas to glow with a new look. By 2021, 470,000 "three supports and one support" personnel have participated in grass-roots education, agriculture, medicine and rural revitalization (poverty alleviation), and millions of young students have participated in the "three rural areas" social practice activities, providing new help for poverty alleviation and rural revitalization.
(D) in the forefront of innovation and entrepreneurship.
In the new era, young people in China are imaginative and creative, emancipated, pioneering and enterprising, brave enough to participate in the increasingly fierce international competition, and become the effective force for innovation and entrepreneurship.
Benefiting from the good policies of the party and the country, in the fields of economy, society, science and technology, culture, etc., young people contribute to the country and serve the people with their intelligence, and strive to be at the forefront of innovation, entrepreneurship and Excellence. Under the guidance of the national innovation-driven development strategy and the encouragement of the system of "unveiling the list" and "horse racing", a group of young scientific and technological talents with international competitiveness stand out and shoulder heavy responsibilities, take the lead and take the lead in major scientific and technological research tasks such as "Tiangong", "Xiaolong", "Eye of Heaven", "Wukong", "Mozi", "Tianwen" and "Chang ‘e". In the front line of engineering technology innovation, more than 3 million graduates from science and engineering colleges leave the school every year, providing a steady stream of effective strength for the engineers in China. With solid knowledge and excellent technology, they continue to create a rare "engineer bonus", which has effectively enhanced China’s development momentum and international competitiveness. Under the background of the country’s continuous introduction of entrepreneurship support policies, young people actively participate in mass entrepreneurship and innovation, and actively participate in "Create Youth "China Youth Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition," China International internet plus "College Students Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition and other entrepreneurial exchange and exhibition activities, with wisdom and talent to start their own business. Since 2014, among the newly registered market entities, there are more than 5 million college entrepreneurs. In the information technology service industry, culture, sports and entertainment industry, science and technology application service industry and other industries with innovation and creativity as their key competitiveness, the proportion of young people exceeds 50%, and a large number of "unicorn enterprises" and "gazelle enterprises" led by young people are pouring out. Young people in China consciously combine their pursuit of life with the development and progress of the country, show their talents and serve the society in innovation and entrepreneurship.
(5) Leading the trend in the construction of social civilization.
In the new era, young people in China conform to the trend of social development, adapt to the modernization requirements of national governance system and governance capacity, lead the new trend of the times in the construction of social civilization, and strive to be advocates of positive energy and practitioners of new trends.
Whether in towns or villages, enterprises or schools, young people consciously combine correct moral cognition, conscious moral cultivation and positive moral practice, and take the lead in advocating an upward social atmosphere and shaping a new social civilization. In the construction of urban and rural communities, more and more young people join in the construction of community governance and service system, take the initiative to participate in the "Community Youth Action", strengthen practical exercise and enhance service contribution. In all walks of life, young people adhere to the concept of "dedication, cooperation, Excellence and dedication", actively create the "Youth Civilization", vigorously carry forward the professional civilization of the new era, and show the professional image of the new era. The vast number of young athletes carry forward the sports ethics and fashion, and obtain both competitive achievements and spiritual civilization with good competition discipline and civilized etiquette. Since the "China Youth Volunteer Action" was launched in 1993, voluntary service has become a banner for young people to participate in social governance and fulfill their social responsibilities, and an important way for young people to exercise and grow up in contributing to the people and serving the society. By the end of 2021, there were more than 90 million registered volunteers aged 14 to 35 in the national volunteer service information system. They were active in community building, large-scale competitions, environmental protection, poverty alleviation and development, health and wellness, emergency rescue, cultural heritage and other fields, and promoted the volunteer spirit of "dedication, friendship, mutual assistance and progress".Form a new trend of unity and mutual assistance, equality and friendship and common progress in the whole society. For 18 years in a row, the China Youth Volunteers’ Relay Program for Poverty Alleviation and the "Western Program" for College Students’ Volunteer Service sent more than 410,000 graduate students and university graduates to more than 2,100 counties (urban flags) in the central and western regions to carry out volunteer services such as poverty alleviation education and health care. Youth has always been the main force of volunteer service in large-scale games, leaving a deep impression on thousands of families and even the world.
Fourth, in the new era, young people in China are open to the world and show their responsibility.
Youth is the future of the country and the future of the world. In the new era, young people in China not only have feelings of home and country, but also care for human beings. They are adhering to the concept of "one country for all" advocated by Chinese culture, actively learning from the beneficial experience and civilized achievements of other countries, and jointly promoting the building of a community of human destiny with young people from all over the world, jointly promoting the common values of peace, development, fairness, justice, democracy and freedom for all mankind, and working together to create a better future for mankind.
(A) more open and confident to integrate into the world
With China’s opening to the outside world, young people in China in the new era know and integrate into the world with unprecedented depth and breadth, and become more rational, tolerant, confident and self-reliant in foreign exchanges and cooperation.
The road to "going out" is getting wider and wider. Through studying abroad, working, traveling and inspecting, the young people in China have learned about the world in an all-round and deep way with great enthusiasm and tolerance, integrated into the world, embraced the world, and learned from the beneficial experience and civilized achievements of other countries. Studying abroad is an important way for China youth to understand the world. In 1978, China sent only over 800 students to study abroad. In 2019, more than 700,000 people went abroad for further study. Over the past 40 years, there have been more than 6.5 million people studying abroad. In 1978, there were only 248 returned overseas students. In 2019, more than 580,000 returned overseas students, and the total number of returned overseas students in the past 40 years has reached more than 4.2 million. At the same time, a large number of young people in China have gone abroad and experienced the world through tourism, study tours, business and labor services. In 2019, domestic residents left the country for 170 million times, and the channels for young people in China to know the world are broader and their international horizons are constantly expanding.
The "friend circle" of communication and cooperation is growing. In various international arenas, young people in China tell the story of China, participate in global youth affairs governance, actively exchange and interact under the bilateral and multilateral framework, and promote win-win cooperation. China’s youth participation in bilateral exchange mechanism is more extensive and in-depth, and it is getting closer and closer and the friendship is getting deeper and deeper. Under the framework of "China Youth Global Partnership Action", China has established exchanges and cooperation with more than 100 international organizations, youth organizations of foreign governments, political parties and non-governmental youth organizations. Under the framework of Sino-Russian, Sino-American, Central European, Sino-Indian, Sino-Japanese and other cultural exchange mechanisms, young people in China are active in foreign interaction and cooperation in the fields of education, science, culture, art, sports and media. Young people in China not only carry out colorful cultural exchanges with their youth partners in neighboring countries and developing countries, but also achieve mutual benefit through innovation and entrepreneurship, economic and trade exchanges and technical exchanges. Young people in China have joined international organizations, participated in international conferences and participated in global governance more actively, and established a brighter international image. In the United Nations and other international organizations, hundreds of China youths have worked hard and made contributions to the cause of world peace and development. Under the framework of the United Nations Youth Forum, the UNESCO Youth Conference and relevant multilateral mechanisms, and in international youth organizations such as the Asian Youth Council, young people in China are more confident to express China’s voice and expound China’s views, and become youth ambassadors for friendship between China and foreign countries.
(2) Show the youthful responsibility of building a community of human destiny.
In the new era, young people in China deeply realize that the future and destiny of every nation and country are closely linked, and they should help each other through thick and thin, and strive to build our common earth home into a big family with common destiny.
Gather the youth consensus in the heart-to-heart communication and dialogue. Young people in China actively advocate and strive to practice the concept of building a community of human destiny, collect youth stories from all over the world, spread the voices of young people from all over the world, and unite the consensus of young people from all over the world around the themes of poverty alleviation, climate change, and anti-epidemic cooperation. In 2020, at the COVID-19 epidemic network meeting jointly organized by relevant United Nations agencies and the World Health Organization, young representatives from China introduced touching stories of participating in volunteer service against the epidemic and shared experiences and practices in scientific response to the epidemic. In the process of formulating cooperation documents in the field of youth by international mechanisms such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, BRICS countries and G20, young people in China actively contributed their wisdom and put forward their opinions, and contributed their wisdom to safeguarding the rights of survival, development, protection and participation of young people all over the world. At the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympic Winter Games, young athletes and young volunteers from all over the world transcended language barriers and cultural differences, spread warmth with smiles, conveyed friendship with hugs, and gathered strength with their hearts to jointly build a bridge of "looking forward to the future together", and conveyed the idea of building a community of human destiny to the whole world in a unique way of youth.
Draw a beautiful picture hand in hand. To promote the building of a community of human destiny, young people in China are deeply impressed by it and are more adept at doing it. China youth actively participate in the "Belt and Road" construction and practice the concept of co-construction, co-construction and sharing. Hundreds of thousands of young employees of overseas Chinese-funded institutions work hard in foreign countries and contribute to local economic and social development; Carry out voluntary service, charitable donations and cultural exchanges to enhance friendship and cooperation with young people in the host country. Volunteers of international Chinese teachers, mainly young people, have served in more than 100 countries to help young people from all over the world learn Chinese culture. The China Young Volunteers Overseas Service Program has sent more than 700 young volunteers to provide services in medical and health care, agricultural technology, civil engineering, industrial technology, economic management and social development in more than 20 countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Young officers and men of China Army actively participate in United Nations peacekeeping operations, cherish the great love of the world, abide by the responsibility of peacekeeping missions, uphold the humanitarian spirit, and inject more positive energy into world peace and development. By 2020, more than 40,000 soldiers from China have gone out for peace, and 16 soldiers from China have died in peacekeeping operations, with an average age of less than 30. The youth in China have proved to the world by their actions that as long as people from all over the world work together with one heart and one mind, the future of the community of human destiny will be even better.
(iii) Global Action Initiative for China Youth.
Mankind has entered a new era of interconnection, and the interests of all countries are closely related and their destinies are closely linked. Nowadays, the world is facing more and more prominent deficits in governance, trust, peace and development, and chaos, tearing and injustice are getting worse. The superposition of the century-old changes and the century-old epidemic has brought serious challenges to the development of the world economy and the improvement of people’s livelihood. Peace or war, light or darkness, mankind is facing an important choice at the crossroads of progress and retrogression. The times call on young people all over the world to unite as one, strengthen mutual understanding, learn from each other’s strong points, look at the world from the perspective of appreciation, mutual learning and sharing, and work together to build a community of human destiny. To this end, young people in China propose to young people all over the world:
— — Adhere to the value pursuit of beauty and goodness. Stand upright, be virtuous, walk the road, respect virtue for goodness, pursue beauty, love life and contribute to society, and carry forward truth, goodness and beauty and spread positive energy bit by bit.
— — Show a vibrant spirit. Self-confidence, self-improvement, high spirits, continuous self-improvement, self-transcendence, and strive to be the best of yourself and realize the dream of youth and the value of life. Advocate healthy life, exercise strong physique, cultivate sunshine mentality and maintain youthful vitality.
— — Strive for the development and progress of the country. With the attitude of being a master, we should study hard, give full play to our intelligence, be bold in innovation and creation, always keep the spirit of striving for progress, always walk in the forefront of the times and shoulder the historical responsibility of national development and progress.
— — Contribute wisdom to world peace and development. Mindful of the world and the future, uphold the common values of all mankind, conform to the trend of the times and the general trend of history, stand on the right side of history and the side of human progress, safeguard world peace, promote common development, promote fairness and justice, defend democracy and freedom, and make positive contributions to building a prosperous and beautiful world.
China youth sincerely hope that the world will be peaceful, stable, developed and prosperous, that every country and region can provide good conditions for youth development, and that young people all over the world can join hands to contribute their wisdom and show their youthful responsibility for building a world with lasting peace, universal security, common prosperity, openness, tolerance and cleanliness.
Concluding remarks
If the younger generation has ideals, skills and responsibilities, the country will have a future and the nation will have hope. The future of China belongs to the youth, and so does the future of the world.
The youth in China in the future will "build a youthful family, a youthful country, a youthful nation, a youthful human being, a youthful earth and a youthful universe", and let go of their youthful dreams in the great practice of national rejuvenation.
In the future, China will surely realize the all-round promotion of material civilization, political civilization, spiritual civilization, social civilization and ecological civilization in the continuous struggle of generations of young people. The people of China will enjoy a happier and healthier life, and the Chinese nation will stand among the nations of the world with a more high-spirited attitude, and the great Chinese dream will surely come true.
The future world is related to the future and destiny of every young person, and it depends on the hard work of every young person. As long as young people from all countries unite and walk in the same direction, adhere to equal consultation, open innovation, help each other in the same boat, and stick to justice, they will certainly be able to stay away from the flames of war and struggle, truly build a "global village" with peaceful development and feel at home, jointly create a bright future of win-win sharing, development and prosperity, health and safety, mutual respect and mutual learning, and realize the common dream of all mankind.
The youth of China are willing to work with the youth of other countries in the world to contribute wisdom and strength to building a community of human destiny and a better world.
① By the end of 2020, there were 5,788 national archival museums, and one was added every two days during the 13th Five-Year Plan period.
That is, preschool education, compulsory education, high school education, junior college education and postgraduate education are all covered, public private schools are all covered, and students with financial difficulties are all covered.
The economic aggregate has reached a new level. In 2007, the province’s GDP exceeded 900 billion yuan, reaching 914.5 billion yuan, an increase of 14.4% over the previous year, the highest increase since the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Party. Among them, the added value of the primary industry was 161.145 billion yuan, an increase of 4.6%; The added value of the secondary industry was 390.116 billion yuan, an increase of 18.6%; The added value of tertiary industry was 363.239 billion yuan, up by 14.4%. From 2003 to 2007, the province’s GDP grew at an average annual rate of 12%. According to the resident population, the province’s per capita GDP is 14,405 yuan, which is 109% higher than that in 2000 and doubled. The total fiscal revenue has crossed the 100 billion yuan mark. According to the statistics of Express, the province’s total fiscal revenue was 111.931 billion yuan, an increase of 25.2% over the previous year. Among them, the local fiscal revenue was 60.318 billion yuan, an increase of 26.2%. The benefits of enterprises have been significantly improved. The profits of industrial enterprises above designated size in the province reached 45.956 billion yuan, an increase of 70.1% over the previous year and an acceleration of 26 percentage points.
Promoting new industrialization has achieved remarkable results. In the province’s GDP, the tertiary industrial structure was adjusted from 17.6∶41.6∶40.8 in the previous year to 17.6∶42.7∶39.7. Due to the vigorous promotion of new industrialization, the proportion of industrial added value to GDP increased by 1.1 percentage points over the previous year, and the proportion of secondary industry added value to GDP also increased by 1.1 percentage points over the previous year. The growth rate of added value of industrial enterprises above designated size in the province was 4.2 percentage points faster than that of the previous year. The proportion of the added value of advantageous industries in the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 0.2 percentage points over the previous year. The added value of industrial parks at the provincial level and above increased by 9.1 percentage points. The added value of high-tech industries accounted for 1.3 percentage points of GDP. Energy saving and consumption reduction achieved the annual target, which was significantly lower than that of the previous year. The supporting role of producer services increased, achieving an added value of 141.339 billion yuan, an increase of 15.1% over the previous year, accelerating by 1.2 percentage points, driving the province’s economic growth by 2.4 percentage points, with a contribution rate of 16.6%. The non-public sector of the economy developed rapidly, achieving an added value of 497.5 billion yuan, accounting for 54.4% of the GDP, an increase of 0.6 percentage points over the previous year; The investment in non-state-owned economy was 275.054 billion yuan, up 35% over the previous year, accounting for 64% of the total investment in fixed assets, up 1.2 percentage points.
The construction of harmonious Hunan has been intensified. The province’s 8 facts and 23 assessment indicators have fully completed the target tasks, of which 14 indicators have exceeded the task. In the whole year, 650,100 people were newly employed in cities and towns, an increase of 3.9% over the previous year. Each of the 30,900 urban zero-employment families has achieved at least one employment. The number of new enterprise basic old-age insurance participants was 459,200. In the whole year, 1.545 billion yuan was invested in urban subsistence allowances, covering 1.34 million people; 399 million yuan was invested in rural subsistence allowances (including assistance to poor rural households), and 1.1 million people were guaranteed. The rate of urban subsistence allowances and rural subsistence allowances paid in place according to the prescribed standards was 100%; 285 township nursing homes were built, expanded and rebuilt, and 13,800 elderly people with five guarantees were newly added. 421,400 square meters of low-rent housing was built (raised) throughout the year, which solved the housing difficulties of 10,045 urban lowest-income families; The new rural cooperative medical system has been successfully implemented in 99 counties and cities in the province, with an average participation rate of 82%. Tuition and miscellaneous fees for 6.25 million and 6.15 million rural primary and secondary school students within the scope of the policy were exempted in spring and autumn; Textbooks were provided free of charge to 1.75 million students from poor families. The lives of the victims have been properly arranged, and 398 million yuan of relief funds (including cash and in-kind discounts) have been distributed throughout the year. The province’s financial expenditure on urban and rural community affairs was 9.178 billion yuan, an increase of 43.9% over the previous year; Education expenditure was 22.293 billion yuan, an increase of 37.1%; Medical and health expenditure was 5.742 billion yuan,An increase of 58.2%. A group of people’s most concerned, most direct and most realistic interests have been solved; The comprehensive management of social security has achieved remarkable results, the people’s sense of security has improved, and the overall social situation in the province has been stable.
The industrial economy is growing strongly. The total industrial added value of the province was 336.059 billion yuan, an increase of 20.2% over the previous year. The added value of industrial enterprises above designated size was 265.597 billion yuan, an increase of 24.3%. Among them, the added value of light industry was 86.288 billion yuan, an increase of 20.5%; The added value of heavy industry was 179.309 billion yuan, an increase of 26.4%, which continued to be higher than that of light industry. The growth of advantageous industries accelerated, achieving an added value of 200.46 billion yuan, an increase of 24.3% over the previous year, accelerating by 4.7 percentage points, driving the added value of industries above designated size in the province to increase by 18.2 percentage points, an increase of 3.3 percentage points over the previous year, and contributing 75.0% to the growth of industries above designated size. The added value of industrial enterprises above designated size in provincial parks and above was 83.718 billion yuan, an increase of 31.9% over the previous year. The output value of new industrial products above designated size was 85.374 billion yuan, an increase of 51.7% over the previous year and an acceleration of 32.3 percentage points. The added value of special equipment manufacturing increased by 44.2%, general equipment manufacturing increased by 36.7%, non-metallic mineral products industry increased by 35.6%, transportation equipment manufacturing increased by 28.5%, ferrous metal smelting and calendering processing industry increased by 23.6%, and chemical raw materials and chemical products manufacturing industry increased by 23.6%. The connection between production and marketing is good. The sales output value of industrial enterprises above designated size in the province reached 837.717 billion yuan, an increase of 36.9% over the previous year, and the product sales rate reached 99.29%.
The scale of investment continues to expand. The investment in fixed assets of the whole society in the province exceeded 400 billion yuan, reaching 429.452 billion yuan, an increase of 32.4% over the previous year. Among them, the investment in fixed assets above cities and towns was 374.914 billion yuan, an increase of 34.6%. In urban investment, state-owned and state-controlled investment was 170.092 billion yuan, an increase of 23.3%. There were 15,585 construction projects and 8,139 completed and put into operation, with an increase of 10.8% and 5.3% respectively.
The retail market of consumer goods is active. The total retail sales of social consumer goods in the province was 335.649 billion yuan, an increase of 18.4% over the previous year, with a real increase of 13.5% after deducting the price factor. Geographically, the retail sales of urban consumer goods was 194.253 billion yuan, and the retail sales at and below the county level were 141.395 billion yuan, up by 19.0% and 17.7% respectively. In terms of industries, the retail sales of the wholesale and retail trade industry was 283.162 billion yuan, an increase of 18.1%; Accommodation and catering industry was 47.976 billion yuan, an increase of 21.0%; Other industries reached 4.51 billion yuan, an increase of 11.4%.
The total import and export volume continued to grow. The total import and export volume of the province was 9.69 billion US dollars, an increase of 31.8% over the previous year. Among them, exports were 6.523 billion US dollars, an increase of 28.1%; Imports reached US$ 3.167 billion, up by 40.2%. The import and export of general trade was 8.755 billion US dollars, an increase of 30.4%; The import and export of processing trade was US$ 814 million, up by 46.0%. The import and export of private enterprises reached US$ 3.59 billion, an increase of 81.1% over the previous year and an acceleration of 28.3 percentage points. The export of mechanical and electrical products was US$ 1.694 billion, up by 73.7% over the previous year, accelerating by 43.3 percentage points; The export of high-tech products was US$ 213 million, an increase of 52.7%. The export of agricultural products was US$ 350 million, up by 12.4%. Among them, the export of live pigs was 53 million US dollars, an increase of 14.7%; Tea exports reached US$ 40 million, up by 19.2%.
Financial services were accelerated. At the end of the year, the balance of various deposits of financial institutions in the province was 915.527 billion yuan, an increase of 17.4% over the previous year. Among them, corporate deposits increased by 25.8%, and savings deposits of urban and rural residents increased by 11.3%; In the whole year, various new deposits reached 134.512 billion yuan, an increase of 13.532 billion yuan over the previous year. The profit of financial institutions in the province was 10.759 billion yuan, an increase of 2.939 billion yuan over the previous year.
Education is developing vigorously. There are 99 colleges and universities in the province, an increase of 3 over the previous year. Graduate education enrolled 14,100 students, an increase of 6.2%; There are 43,300 graduate students and 9,500 graduates. General higher education enrolled 291,200 students, an increase of 9.5%; There are 898,600 students and 209,800 graduates. All kinds of secondary vocational education enrolled 336,800 students, an increase of 7.1%; There are 830,600 students and 256,400 graduates. Ordinary high schools enrolled 438,100 students, down 10.5%; There are 1,307,300 students and 408,700 graduates. Junior high school enrolled 733,600 students, an increase of 0.9%; There are 2,235,800 students and 948,800 graduates. Ordinary primary schools enrolled 862,800 students, an increase of 9.8%; There are 4,448,400 students and 712,900 graduates. The number of students enrolled in special education was 2300, an increase of 72.0%; There are 13,200 students in school. The enrollment rate of primary school-age children in the province was 99.83%, an increase of 0.3 percentage points over the previous year. The enrollment rate of junior high school-age population was 99.41%, an increase of 0.29 percentage points. 4,776 private schools with 1,335,700 students; There are 13 private colleges and universities with 76,700 students; There are 15 private independent colleges with 76,700 students.
Intellectual property rights have developed rapidly. The number of patent applications in the province was 11,233, an increase of 9.6% over the previous year. Among them, there were 3,670 invention patents, accounting for 32.7% of the total number of applications; There were 4,067 job applications, accounting for 36.2% of the total number of applications. The patent applications of universities, research institutes and enterprises increased by 48.2%, 112.7% and 31.2% respectively. The number of patents granted in the province was 5,687, an increase of 1.4%. Zhuzhou City was approved as a national intellectual property demonstration city, Zhuzhou High-tech Industrial Development Zone and Changsha Economic and Technological Development Zone were successfully approved as national intellectual property pilot parks, and Sany Heavy Industry was listed as a national intellectual property demonstration and creation unit.
Cultural undertakings have flourished. By the end of the year, there were 93 performing arts groups, 140 cultural centers, 120 public libraries and 69 museums and memorial halls in the province. Huagu Opera "Into the Sunshine" won the Wenhua Drama Award of the 12th National Wenhua Award; Huagu Opera "Anecdotes of Old Table" and "Heroes of Ancient Paintings" won the Excellent Drama Award and Selected Works Award in the 10th National Spiritual Civilization Construction Project respectively. There are 11 radio stations and 15 TV stations. There are 5,101,200 cable TV users in the province, an increase of 399,900. At the end of the year, the comprehensive population coverage rate of broadcasting was 89.03%, an increase of 0.65 percentage points over the previous year. The comprehensive coverage rate of TV population was 94.69%, an increase of 0.68 percentage points over the previous year.
The ecological environment has been continuously improved. The province shut down 554,000 kilowatts of small thermal power, eliminated 6 million tons of backward cement production capacity, shut down 90 small cement enterprises and shut down 146 paper enterprises around Dongting Lake. The centralized sewage treatment rate of the city was 46.3%, an increase of 3.6 percentage points over the previous year; The harmless treatment rate of municipal solid waste was 52.7%, an increase of 6.4 percentage points. The air quality of 14 cities and prefectures reached the second-class standard in 7; The cross-section ratio of surface water in the whole province meeting the Class III standard was 82.3%, an increase of 7.14 percentage points. The local water quality of Dongting Lake rose from Grade V to Grade III. The province has approved 25 national ecological demonstration zones. The annual afforestation area is 76,200 hectares. The forest coverage rate in the province was 56.1%, 0.57 percentage points higher than the previous year.
Residents’ income has increased substantially. The per capita disposable income of urban residents in the province was 12,293.54 yuan, an increase of 17.0% over the previous year. After deducting the price factor, the real increase was 11.2%, 2.6 percentage points faster, the highest level since 1996. Among them, the per capita wage income was 7975.14 yuan, an increase of 16.7% and an acceleration of 8 percentage points; The net operating income was 1,192.42 yuan, up by 10.0% and accelerated by 3.4 percentage points; Transfer income was 2,955.07 yuan, up by 20.4% and accelerated by 7.3 percentage points; Property income was 170.91 yuan, an increase of 28.4%. The per capita disposable income of the lowest-income households was 4,455.18 yuan, an increase of 26.9%; The per capita income ratio of the highest-income households to the lowest-income households decreased from 8.02: 1 in the previous year to 7.31: 1. The per capita net income of rural residents was 3,904.26 yuan, an increase of 15.2%. After deducting the price factor, the real increase was 8.3%. Among them, wage income was 1,712.31 yuan, an increase of 18.1%; Family business income was 1,963.91 yuan, an increase of 12.6%; Transfer and property income was 228.04 yuan, an increase of 16.0%.
