Peng Liyuan, wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping, and UN Under-Secretary-General and UN Women Executive Director Sima Bahous on Tuesday visited an exhibition in Beijing showcasing China's progress in digital and intelligent empowerment for women and girls.
The exhibition was opened on Tuesday as a side event of the Global Leaders' Meeting on Women.
As technology races ahead, new-generation information technologies have become a new engine for women and girls to pursue their dreams, said Peng, adding that China's push to develop digital and intelligent technologies is reshaping the lifestyles of women and girls, creating broader development opportunities for them in the era of digital intelligence.
Peng, a UNESCO special envoy for the advancement of girls' and women's education, said that she looks forward to working together with everyone to usher in a future full of opportunities in the era of digital intelligence and to elevate the global advancement of women.
Bahous highly commended China's remarkable achievements in bridging the digital gender gap, promoting all-round development of women, and protecting women's rights and interests.
Bahous called on the international community to work together to empower women and girls to achieve all-round development in the era of digital intelligence.
Peng, together with domestic and international guests, toured the exhibition, and watched a smart cloud classroom, Spring Bud Project girls demonstrating robot-operated Rubik's Cube solving, and traditional culture shows, among other displays.
Spouses of foreign leaders, and heads of women's organizations also attended the event.
Peng Liyuan visits exhibition on digital, intelligent empowerment for women, girls
Peng, UN Women chief visit exhibition on digital empowerment for women, girls
Peng, UN Women chief visit exhibition on digital empowerment for women, girls
China will give priority to expanding domestic demand this year, taking multiple measures to encourage people to consume, an official said Thursday in Beijing at a press conference on the interpretation of the government work report.
The government work report was submitted to the National People's Congress (NPC), the country's supreme organ of state power, for deliberation..
Shen Danyang, head of the government work report drafting team and director of the State Council Research Office, said China has for the first time proposed the implementation of an urban and rural residents' income growth plan.
Shen said a series of policy measures will be introduced to promote income increases for low-income groups, expand residents' property income, and improve salary and social security systems. The objective is to enable more residents to have fuller "pockets", thereby fundamentally strengthening their consumption capacity.
Meanwhile, efforts will be made to foster new growth points for consumption on the supply side, launch pilot projects of new consumption forms, models and scenarios, and cultivate consumption scenarios like culture and tourism, the automotive aftermarket and sports events, to better meet people's demands, he said.
Shen said the measures will extend beyond merely stimulating consumption, aiming instead to fully unleash the spending potential of the population.
"For instance, this year we will enhance safeguards in areas such as medical care, elderly support, childbirth and child-rearing, raise government subsidy standards for basic medical insurance, and develop inclusive childcare services. It is believed that these measures will further encourage ordinary citizens to feel more confident and willing to consume," said Shen.
Shen said China will further increase its support for offline physical retail, with a focused emphasis on subsidy measures. Priority will be given to key consumer durables with broad coverage and strong multiplier effects, such as automobiles, refrigerators, washing machines, and televisions, through trade-in programs for replacements with new items.
He said the trade-in policy will apply to more products this year, enabling more people to receive subsidies for new products.
"This year, a 100-billion-yuan special fund for promoting domestic demand through fiscal and financial coordination has been established. It is a very new policy this year. The optimized loan interest subsidy policies for business entities in service industry and personal consumption will expand the scope of support and raise the upper limit of subsidies, which will bring more consumers a greater sense of gain," said Shen.
To boost consumption and expand domestic demand, Shen said this year China will also break down barriers, remove obstacles, and further eliminate various restrictive measures on consumption, thereby smoothing the consumption cycle.
"We will adopt targeted, category-specific measures to address implicit barriers in the consumer market, and streamline the approval procedures for promotional activities. In select cities, restrictions on vehicle purchases will be further relaxed, and additional vehicle purchase quotas will be issued. Eligible street-front commercial premises will also be permitted to engage in outdoor business operations," he said.
China to take multiple measures to encourage consumption: official
