President Jiang Zemin said that doing a good job of reforming state-owned enterprises is extremely important for the country's reform program, development and stability.
"Reform of state-owned enterprises, especially big and medium-sized ones, is a major economic and political issue that has a direct bearing on the fate of the socialist system as well as the healthy operation and long-term development of the national economy," he said.
Jiang, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks in Beijing yesterday during a group discussion attended by Shanghai deputies to the Ninth National People's Congress (NPC) in session in Beijing since last Friday.
China's state-owned enterprises have always had a very important position in the country's economic and social development and, over the past decades, they have made outstanding contributions to, and have been playing a leading role in, the national economy, he said.
"The period from now to the end of the first decade of the next century is crucial for China's reform and development," he said. "It is necessary during this period to push ahead with state enterprise reform if we want to establish a well-functioning socialist market economy and maintain a sustained, speedy and healthy development of the national economy."
State enterprise reform is the centerpiece of China's entire economic reform program, he said, calling for making greater efforts and taking effective measures to do a good job in this regard.
Jiang talked about favorable conditions for state enterprise reform as follows:
First, principles and polices for state enterprise reform have been worked out; second, much headway has been made and much experience gained in two decades of state enterprise reform; third, a social security system is being established and improved, and development of a multi-ownership economy is providing job opportunities; and fourth, the government has gained experience in exercising macroeconomic controls over the economy.
Regarding guiding principles for reform of state enterprises, Jiang said the following: first, to adhere to a basic economic system where the publicly-owned economic sector dominates and develops together with economic sectors of other ownership forms;
second, to actively explore new approaches for developing state enterprises under market economic conditions; third, to create favorable external conditions for state enterprise reform; and fourth, to strengthen Party leadership over state enterprise reform.
March 9, 1999
Source: www.people.com.cn
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