All-round reform

The communique points out that to better adjust to the new realities of economic globalization, China must accelerate the pace of opening-up, both internally and in terms of the outside world. The country will lower the thresholds for investment, accelerate the construction of free trade zones, and boost opening-up in inland and coastal areas.

Huang Hai, vice-president of the China Association of Trade in Services, said relaxing the investment barriers and accelerating the construction of free trade zones are fundamental changes.

"Take foreign investors, for example, previously they were only allowed to invest in the fields and projects stipulated in the Catalogue of Foreign Investment Industries. However, under the new regulations in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone, they can invest in a wider range of fields," said Huang.

Businesses have more rights and receive an improved service in the new free trade zone. If the pilot in Shanghai is successful, it may be expanded nationwide, he added.

Since the new cabinet assumed office in March, great efforts have been made to trim the government's power to grant administrative approval powers. Following that came the decision that capital registration will no longer be a requirement for opening a new business. These moves have made conducting business easier for both Chinese and foreign companies. Some newly developed areas in central and western China have started to receive more investment from overseas, especially in high-end manufacturing. In the meantime, service industries have been required to open up even further, most noticeably in the newly designated Shanghai pilot free trade zone, which is to serve as a testing ground for the new programs for the opening-up of the country's financial and service industries.

The communique said China will strive to make social welfare fairer and more sustainable. Reform of social affairs is vital to guarantee all citizens enjoy the fruits of China's development, it said.

Guan Xinping, director of the department of social work and social policy at Nankai University, said China has almost met the goal of universal social welfare coverage for its urban and rural populations, but a great disparity still exists among different professions and regions.

"The system is fragmented, as different people enjoy different levels of welfare," he said. "It's vital for the government to tackle the disparity and enable people to enjoy equal welfare." He added that China's social welfare system should also be more sustainable, to cope with the potential risks from an aging population and inflation in the long run.

China started its basic social security network in 2012, but has yet to achieve equality among all citizens. For instance, the country's 300 million or so migrant workers are entitled to social insurance in the cities where they work but still face obstacles in receiving the benefit if they leave their current jobs to work in other cities. Retirement insurance is also of prime importance, as some 500 million people－35 percent of the population－will be aged 60 or older by 2050. Maintaining the value of the huge pension insurance fund, which affects the livelihoods of hundreds of millions, is another challenge for the government.