China prioritizes employment on development agenda: Premier Li

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said Tuesday that employment is always a development agenda priority, as it is fundamental to inclusive growth.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang addresses the opening ceremony of the 11th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the World Economic Forum's Summer Davos session, in Dalian, on Tuesday, June 27, 2017. [Photo: Xinhua]

Li made the remarks in a speech at the opening ceremony of the Annual Meeting of the New Champions 2017, also known as Summer Davos, held in northeast China's port city of Dalian.

To ensure stable employment, China has rolled out an array of pro-employment policies for college graduates, those made redundant, the disabled, and migrant workers, while the country's entrepreneurial wave has helped fuel job creation, said Li.

Over the past years, China saw more than 13 million jobs created for urban residents annually, with the country's registered urban unemployment rate at around five percent, he said.

The growth of Chinese residents' income has kept pace with GDP growth, while China's Gini index continues to drop and the middle-income group is expanding, said the premier.

"This is a remarkable achievement for a developing nation with more than 1.3 billion people, and it is also an important contribution to world inclusive growth," said Li.

From Tuesday to Thursday, around 1,500 politicians, officials, entrepreneurs, scholars and media representatives from over 90 countries and regions will assemble in Dalian to discuss topics from inclusive growth to the new industrial revolution.

The meeting, themed "Achieving Inclusive Growth in the Fourth Industrial Revolution," will focus on how technology and policy innovations can accelerate a more inclusive style of economic growth that prioritizes meaningful jobs.

Established by the World Economic Forum in 2007, the summer forum is held each year in China, alternating between the port cities of Dalian and Tianjin.