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The International Department of the CPC Central Committee holds a briefing to foreign diplomats on China's recently issued five-year plan in Beijing on Monday. [Photo by Chen Boyuan/China.org.cn]

An official who drafted China's five-year plans reassures foreign diplomats that the country will continue to drive the global economic growth with its demand for the international market.

Yang Weimin, deputy director of the Office of the Central Leading Group on Financial and Economic Affairs -- which maps out the country's economic policy -- made the remarks during a briefing to foreign diplomats on China's recently issued five-year plan in Beijing on Monday.

The Chinese economy recorded a modest growth rate of 6.9 percent in the third quarter, triggering fears that the world's second largest economy may have lost its growth momentum and may drag the world economy into further slowdown.

The country's five-year plan, a blueprint that charts a course from 2016 to 2020, has thus attracted much attention from the world.

Yang Weimin argued that in future, China will see a diminished role of exports in driving economic growth, but the country will depend more on internal demands, especially consumption, to boost its economy. "In the process of China's economic growth, there will emerge huge demands for the international market, which will then drive global economic growth." he said.

"China will not only develop its own economy, but also promote and drive strong, balanced, and sustainable economic growth in the world." he added.

China's role in the world economy has increased after the 2008 global financial crisis, and the impact of its current economic downward pressure is also increasingly being felt by the global economy, Yang said, adding that the draft of the five-year plan has taken into consideration the changes in the international economic landscape.

Yang believed that the world economy will "recover with twists and turns," but it is unlikely to witness again the booming growth of the years before 2008, as much of the recovery is mainly led by stimulus measures which are not sustainable.

Abolishment of the one-child policy

During the 5th Plenary Session of the 18th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee which was held at the end of last month, China announced the abolishment of its decades-long one-child policy, allowing every couple to have two children.

Asked by a German diplomat during the briefing on Monday whether the decision was spurred by economic growth concerns, Yang said it is "a far-sighted decision which addresses both economic and social problems and takes future trends into account." He further said that the revised policy is not aimed at short-term economic growth, but to maintain a long-term balance in the country's demographic structure.

According to Yang, China saw the largest population growth from 1965 to 1975 when a total of 270 million people were born. By the time that group of people retire (from 2018 to 2023), they will have to be replaced by the first generation born in the 21st century which totaled 160 million, hence creating a huge gap in the country's labor force.

The senior policymaker further noted that China is the world's third largest aging society after Europe and Japan. Thus, if the population policy is not adjusted, there will be more problems regarding care for senior citizens and the labor shortage.

However, Yang also emphasized that China will still stick to family planning as a fundamental national policy, that every couple is allowed to have no more than two children.

Coal consumption and carbon emissions cut

With the Paris climate change conference around the corner, China's future efforts in tackling climate change have also generated much attention.

Asked by a diplomat from the EU delegation about China's coal consumption and whether the country will set a related target in the five-year plan, Yang Weimin pointed out that China has emphasized the concept of "green development." In other words, it endorses environment-friendly development in its blueprint.

The country will increase the proportion of non-fossil fuels, especially new energy, in the energy mix, Yang said. China will also promote the clean and efficient use of fossil energy, particularly coal, as the country is not going to see an immediate decrease of coal consumption in the energy mix as its European and American counterparts do, he added.

More detailed measures will be introduced including the "proactive control of carbon emissions" and the "efficient control of carbon emissions in electricity, steel, construction and chemical engineering industries," according to Yang. A pilot program of near-zero emissions will also be carried out in some places and later extended to other regions of the country, he said.

More than 150 diplomats, including over 30 ambassadors, from nearly 120 nations attended the briefing on Monday. The briefing was hosted by the International Department of the CPC Central Committee.

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