Premier Li Keqiang presided over the State Council’s executive meeting on July 21, 2023. During the meeting, the current flood control and drought relief efforts were reported, and two important measures were approved: guidelines for promoting the transformation of urban villages in large and super-large cities, and the draft Social Insurance Handling Regulations.
Flood Control and Drought Relief Efforts: The meeting emphasized that the current period is critical for flood control and drought relief, and all relevant departments across the country must prioritize the safety and well-being of the people. They were urged to take a strong sense of political responsibility to effectively implement flood control and drought relief measures. Authorities were instructed to adopt a bottom-line and limit-thinking approach, strengthen preparations for flood control and drought relief, review and reinforce existing work, and ensure responsibilities are effectively carried out. Special attention was given to utilizing the practical experience of grassroots officials and promptly taking effective measures to eliminate risks and vulnerabilities in key areas.
The meeting emphasized the importance of simultaneously addressing flood control and drought relief, guarding against the concurrent occurrence of both disasters, and ensuring precise allocation of drought relief water sources. The goal is to secure water supply for urban and rural areas, especially for agricultural production.
Transformation of Urban Villages in Large and Super-Large Cities: The meeting recognized the active and steady implementation of the transformation of urban villages in large and super-large cities as an important measure to improve people’s livelihoods, stimulate domestic demand, and promote high-quality urban development. Authorities were instructed to steadily promote the transformation, giving priority to areas with urgent public demands and significant safety and social governance risks. The transformation should be carried out in a step-by-step manner, ensuring that each project is successfully implemented to genuinely benefit the people. City governments were asked to take the main responsibility, strengthen organization and implementation, scientifically formulate transformation plans, explore multiple channels for funding, efficiently utilize land resources, balance various interests, and integrate the transformation of urban villages with the construction of affordable housing.
The meeting also emphasized the pivotal role of the market in resource allocation and the active role of the government in providing policy support for the transformation of urban villages. The meeting encouraged and supported private capital participation, encouraged the development of various new business formats, and aimed to achieve sustainable operations.
Draft Social Insurance Handling Regulations: The meeting underscored that enacting the social insurance handling regulations will help standardize handling service behavior, improve service management levels, and better protect the rights and interests of the people concerning social insurance. Authorities were urged to use the formulation of the regulations as an opportunity to further resolve difficulties and blockages encountered by the public in handling social insurance matters. The meeting encouraged the innovation of various service methods, such as online and offline services, to make social insurance handling more convenient and beneficial to the people. Additionally, the meeting called for strengthening supervision of social insurance funds, improving the system and mechanism, and strictly managing each aspect to ensure the safe operation of the funds. Illegal activities, such as misappropriation and fraud, will be strictly punished in accordance with the law to guarantee the safety of the funds’ operation.
The meeting also discussed other matters during its proceedings.
https://www.gov.cn/yaowen/liebiao/202307/content_6893528.htm