South African Deputy President Paul Mashatile said in an interview in Beijing that he appreciates China's strategy to make long-term and continuous plans to promote the country's development.
Mashatile told China Global Television Network (CGTN) that South Africa has been paying close attention to China's development, especially the country's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030).
"We are looking at the strategies that they are using here. We are looking at their long-term planning, something that I quite appreciate with China to have long-term planning and make sure that as you develop, you are able to measure, like you are now entering your 15th strategic plan. You started [a new plan] every five years, you achieve the results, you take another five years, you achieve the results -- it's very good. That's really what we should be doing ourselves. So, the partnership is very strong and it's going to grow even stronger as we go forward," he said.
China's 15th Five-Year Plan focuses on high-quality development, technological self-reliance, green transition, and national security, with goals for modernization and global engagement by 2035.
Five-year plans may have originated in the planned economy era, but in China's contemporary "socialist market economy," they remain essential instruments of strategic direction.
They do not chiefly command output; rather, they indicate where policy preference, sources of financing, regulatory accommodation, and political endorsement are likely to converge.
S African Deputy President appreciates China's long-term development planning
