On November 9, a background briefing for foreign diplomatic envoys to China on the Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee was held by the International Department of the CPC Central Committee in Beijing. Senior diplomats from over 100 countries, including more than 60 foreign ambassadors, were in attendance.

Mqabuko Spencer Dube, Charge d'Affaires of the Zimbabwean Embassy in China, was one of the participants of the briefing, listening carefully to what was being said. He felt it was an important opportunity to "better understand what China plans to do in the future."

"As the second-largest economy in the world, and the first major economy to rebound amid the COVID-19 outbreak, China certainly has a great impact on the world economy," Dube told ChinAfrica.

He said the plan announced at the plenary session mapped out a grand blueprint for China's new journey to build a modern socialist country, enhanced the confidence of the world in China's development, and injected stronger impetus for the common development of China and the world.

Five-Year Plans of China have always been an important window for the international community to understand the CPC's governance of China and the country's economic and social development. From 1953, China has made and implemented 13 Five-Year Plans, eight of which were after the country's reform and opening up.

With the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) period ending this year, China will primarily realize the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

But a question often asked by international observers is - what does China plan to do beyond this period? The Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee held on October 26-29 answered this question. The plenary session laid out a comprehensive guideline for the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), which covers major aspects of China's socioeconomic life. Several components of the plan will have far-reaching effects on Africa, as China is the largest trading partner of the continent by far.

Innovation as the core

In the 14th Five-Year Plan, achieving independence and making China more competitive in science and technology are major pillars of China's economic development, marking the first time the CPC put innovation at the top of the agenda.

Over the past five years, the country has made significant progress in building an innovative society.

In the Global Innovation Index released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), China's ranking jumped from 29th in 2015 to 14th in 2020.

The country's total expenditure on research and development (R&D) reached 2.21 trillion yuan ($326 billion) in 2019, accounting for 2.23 percent of the GDP. The gross expenditure on basic research almost doubled from 2015, reaching 133.6 billion yuan ($19.7 billion) in 2019. The total contract value of technology also doubled, exceeding 2.2 trillion yuan ($324.48 billion) in 2019.

Notable achievements have been made in high technologies, such as the landing of Chang'e-4 robotic spacecraft on the far side of the moon, the global networking of the BeiDou navigation satellite system, the maiden flight of China's first home-made large passenger jet C919, and the maiden voyage of Xuelong-2 to the South Pole.

Science and technology have also played a major role in underpinning high-quality development, such as 5G entering full commercial application and the development of key equipment for chip packaging.

"China's sci-tech innovation is open and cooperative. Today, elements that drive innovation have broken through national borders and flowed globally. Therefore, China will by no means close its doors to achieve technological self-reliance," said Sui Jigang, a researcher with the Institutes of Science and Development, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Indeed, the cooperation in innovation between China and Africa benefits people significantly in the past years. Chinese companies' investments in innovation on the continent have diversified since early forays and now include broadcasting networks, data centers and smartphone sales.

Notably, the most remarkable Chinese contribution, perhaps, has been the construction of modern railways that crisscross the African continent. For instance, a standard gauge railway will connect Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and South Sudan. It is Kenya's biggest infrastructure project since its independence in 1963 and was developed with Chinese technology and skills, providing one of the best examples of modern transportation systems in Africa.

Well-being of people

The well-being of people will reach a new level in the 14th Five-Year Plan. China aims to achieve fuller and higher-quality employment, with personal income growth basically in step with economic growth, and marked improvements in distribution structure, according to the plan.

Key measures for improving the quality of life have been proposed. In particular, common prosperity of society is forecast for 2035.

Common prosperity is the shared aspiration of the people and the fundamental purpose of economic and social development, said Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Ning Jizhe, Vice Minister of the National Development and Reform Commission, said in the next five years, the government will further boost employment and improve employment support for vulnerable groups, increase the income of urban and rural residents through multiple channels, and keep residents' income growth synchronized with economic expansion.

In the past few years, Chinese residents' income has continued to grow. From 2016 to 2019, their annual per-capita disposable income increased by 6.5 percent on average; the income gap between urban and rural residents gradually narrowed; and the middle-income population group increased from more than 100 million in 2010 to more than 400 million in 2019.

Strategies to cope with population aging are to be implemented, and a fair, uniform and sustainable multi-level social security system will be established, said Ning.

Increased opening up

"Dual circulation" is a buzzword in the new plan, which takes the domestic market as the mainstay and allows domestic and foreign markets to boost each other.

There have been voices hyping concerns that the Chinese economy is "turning inward," and even interpreting the enhancement of internal circulation as "closing doors" to the global market. In fact the strengthening of internal circulation has no contradiction with China's policy of opening up.

China has long maintained that opening up is a fundamental national policy regardless of how the international and domestic situations evolve, advancing development for itself and offering more opportunities for the rest of the world to do the same.

Since 2016, the country has opened wider to the world, adding 17 pilot free trade zones nationwide. It has also remained a favored destination for foreign investment.

"According to the plan, whilst China will strengthen domestic consumption under the dual circulation model, it will also not abandon opening up. In that regard, Africa looks forward to increased trade with China," Mqabuko Spencer Dube told ChinAfrica.

Expressing similar views, Angolan Ambassador to China João Salvador dos Santos Neto told ChinAfrica that China has always adhered to the policy of strengthening cooperation with other countries. He believes China's future development will also promote the development of economies in other countries, especially in Africa and Latin America.

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