The third session of the 13th National People’s Congress opened on May 22nd in the Great Hall of the People. As is customary, Premier Li Keqiang of the State Council delivered the government work report.
The Charity Times (公益时报), China’s most prestigious newspaper focused on charity and philanthropy, published an article highlighting eight points from the report that deserve serious consideration by social forces and charities. The eight points are as follows:
1. The role of volunteers in epidemic prevention and control is mentioned in the report, but charitable organizations and social workers are not. This shows that social organizations and social workers need to work more actively, and increase policy advocacy to gain more social recognition.
2. Alleviating poverty by encouraging consumption has become an important way for social forces to participate in the drive for poverty alleviation.
3. Government procurement may see three changes: the amount of funds will be smaller, the fields of service more restricted, and the requirements will get higher.
4. Social organizations should actively strive for tax reductions, reduced office rent and other faciliations.
5. Educational charities should actively pay attention to vocational education and vocational training. For social organizations and charitable forces, this means not only a clear investment direction, but also an important source of funds (government purchases services) and an opportunity to cultivate talents for industry.
6. Environmental protection and public welfare should focus on wildlife protection and related fields.
7. Charity should play a role in social governance, and social organizations should provide services to the communities.
8. Social organizations working in fields such as emergency rescue and disaster prevention and reduction will be vigorously developed.
