Fifth, we should solve prominent problems of public concern. All government work is for the people. We sh ould keep in mind the fact that China remains in the primary stage of socialism and pursue a people focused development philosophy. Where conditions permit, we will lose no time in solving problems about which the people have great concern and which demand speedy resolution. When problems cannot be solved for the time being, we will work to resolve them over time. We must make dedicated efforts to deliver services to the people, resolve the difficulties they face, promote social equity and justice, and demonstrate that development does better people's lives.
I now wish to discuss our major areas of work for 2017.
Confronted with the formidable tasks of reform and development and maintaining stability this year, we must keep in mind the big picture and adopt a holistic approach, have clear priorities and focus on key tasks, and properly handle interactions among various sectors. We should give priority to the following areas of work.
1. Pushing ahead with the five priority tasks through reform
We should, on the basis of consolidating and building on what we have achieved, improve our policies and measures in light of new developments and new problems so as to make greater progress.
Take solid and effective steps to cut overcapacity
This year, we will further reduce steel production capacity by around 50 million metric tons and shut down at least 150 million metric tons of coal production facilities. At the same time, we will suspend or postpone construction on or eliminate no less than 50 million kilowatts of coal-fired power generation capacity, in order to guard against and defuse the risks of overcapacity in coal-fired power, improve the efficiency of this sector, and make room for clean energy to develop.
We will strictly enforce all laws, regulations, and standards on environmental protection, energy consumption, quality, and safety and make more use of market and law-based methods as we work to address the problems of "zombie enterprises," encourage enterprise mergers, restructuring, and bankruptcy liquidations, shut down all outdated production facilities that fail to meet standards, and stringently control the launching of new projects in industries that are already saddled with overcapacity.
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