To establish and improve the basic public services system and promote the equalization of basic public services is an important measure for thoroughly implementing the Scientific Outlook on Development, an urgent need for building a socialist harmonious society and maintaining social fairness and justice, and a basic requirement for building a service-oriented government in all respects. Advancing social development by focusing on ensuring and improving people's wellbeing is of great significance to effectively safeguarding the most practical and direct interests of the most concern to all the people, accelerating the transformation of economic development mode, and boosting domestic demand especially consumer demand.

During the Eleventh Five-Year Plan period, remarkable achievements have been made in developing the basic public services system. the framework of basic public services, which is mainly provided by the government for safeguarding people's basic demands of survival and development, has taken shape: free compulsory education been fully implemented; an employment services system for the whole work force been formed; social insurance system been extended from urban to rural areas, and from workers to residents; social aid system and social welfare system been set up; an urban and rural system of medical and health care services at the primary level been developed; a national basic drugs system been initially established; development of low-income housing projects been accelerated, and public cultural facilities gradually improved.

The time span of the Twelfth Five-Year Plan remains an important period of strategic opportunities for China to achieve greatness. The period is also crucial for accelerating the establishment of the basic public services system. We need to firmly grasp rare historic opportunities, live up to the new expectations of people of all ethnic groups for a better life, strive to improve the level and equalization of basic public services, promote balanced social and economic development, and lay a solid foundation for building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

Making basic public services public goods and providing them to people is a concept-to-practice innovation of China's public services development. All Chinese citizens, under China's socialism, are entitled to access to basic public services. It is the government's responsibility to safeguard the entitlement of every citizen to basic public services, and the establishment of a sound basic public services system depends on institutional designing, systematic planning and overall implementation. The basic requirements includes putting people first, ensuring the fundamentals, government's leadership, non-profit nature; seeking balanced and coordinated development between urban and rural areas, strengthening the grassroots, reform, innovation, and efficiency. The main objectives of basic public services in the Twelfth Five-Year Plan are expanded coverage, balanced development, convenient and accessible service, and people's satisfaction.

The main contents of basic public service in the Twelfth Five-Year Plan are as follows:

Firstly, to identify the scope, projects, key tasks and national basic standards for basic public services. A number of projects will be carried out to improve the basic public services' infrastructure and network in areas such as basic public education, employment services, social insurance, basic social services, basic medical and health care, population and family planning, basic housing, public culture and sports, and basic public services for the disabled.

Secondly, to gradually establish an integrated system of basic public services in urban and rural areas; improve institutional structure to advance equalization of regional basic public services; and give priority to rural areas, poverty-stricken areas and disadvantaged groups in public resources distribution; allocate more financial and material resources to grass roots localities to narrow the gap of basic public services, and promote balanced recourse allocation and equal development opportunity.

Thirdly, establish a mechanism to coordinate increase of governmental expenditures on basic public services with economic development and increase of government revenues, specify government agencies' administrative responsibilities and their corresponding fiscal obligations, improve transfer payment system, guarantee financial input, and earnestly enhance financial input from governments at all levels, especially the county level, on basic public services.

Fourthly, set up a supply mode of basic public services featured by government's guidance, public and private participation; give full play to the role of market mechanism with a prerequisite of letting government take its responsibility; encourage public input; and diversify suppliers and means of basic public services.

Fifthly, stress the role of public guidance, overall plan and coordination, establish a sound implementation, clarify responsibilities and division of labor in different localities and among different departments, and enhance assessment, supervision and accountability.

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