Jiang made the remarks at a working conference on alleviating poverty held by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) that closed in Beijing Friday.

The two-day conference summarized China's experience in poverty relief in the last years of the last century and discussed the outline of a new poverty-relief strategy for the decade between 2001 and 2010.

Jiang pointed out that over the last two decades, China has reduced its rural poor population by 220 million, and the proportion of impoverished population to the total rural population went down from 30.7 percent to about 3 percent.

He stressed that China's success in poverty relief is an important embodiment of the advantages of the socialistic system and proof of the great importance attached by the Chinese government and the Party on promoting the cause of human rights, especially the rights of subsistence and development.

Such a success has also contributed greatly to the sustainable development of the economy, and to the maintenance of ethnic harmony and unity, safety of the border and social stability, Jiang said.

On the other hand, Jiang noted that there are still 30 million people living under the poverty line in rural areas. To bring them out of poverty will be an arduous task.

He stressed that for future poverty relief programs to succeed, China must advance even further its reforms, uphold the spirit of hard work and diligence, explore new means of development that fits local conditions, and mobilize the whole society in the cause.

China's relatively more developed eastern regions shall continue to give support to the development of the western regions in the form of a partnership, Jiang said.

He emphasized that in poverty relief programs, priority must be given to minority ethnic areas, former revolutionary bases, border areas and extremely poor areas.

Also addressing the conference, Premier Zhu Rongji said poverty relief will be critical to the attainment of China's 10th five-year plan and the building of a well-off society.

He stressed the importance of a new model of thinking and new methods in poverty relief in light of the changes in the Chinese economy.

Every effort must start from the reality and be market oriented.

The economic restructuring must be actively pursued. The wasting of funds and resources and damages to the environment must be avoided, Zhu said.

Senior Chinese leaders Li Ruihuan, Hu Jintao, Wei Jianxing and Li Lanqing also attended Friday's meeting.

(People's Daily 05/26/2001)