Adding value

During the CPC's four-day plenum, the country also announced plans to develop new strategic industries, the value-added output of which is expected to account for 8 percent of the GDP by 2015.

The industries include alternative energy, biotechnology, new-generation information technology, high-end equipment manufacturing, advanced materials, alternative-fuel cars and energy-saving and environmental protection, the State Council, or China's cabinet, said in a statement on its website (www.gov.cn). According to it, the value-added output of these industries would amount to 15 percent of the country's GDP by 2020.

The Chinese Government has urged sectors to step up research on core technologies and support firms to run businesses overseas.

Foreign investors are also welcome to set up venture capital firms and invest in these new strategic sectors, the statement said.

The government will encourage financial institutions to finance the growth of these industries. It will also ask venture capital firms and private equity funds to provide funding for these sectors, according to the statement.

China

CMC Gets New Vice Chairman

The Fifth Plenary Session of the 17th CPC Central Committee announced in a communique at the close of the four-day meeting that Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping has been appointed vice chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the CPC.

> Xi is also member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.

> Born in 1953, Xi has served in a number of positions related to the armed forces and military reserve affairs during his previous tenures at national and local levels.

> He was a military officer in active service when he worked as a secretary at the General Office of the State Council and the General Office of the CMC from 1979 to 1982.

> He served as the first political commissar and first secretary of the Party committee of the people's armed forces department of Zhengding County, Hebei Province in north China, from 1983 to 1985 when he was the secretary of the county's Party committee.

> Xi later served as the first secretary of the sub-military area commands' Party committees of Ningde and Fuzhou, both in south China's Fujian Province, from 1988 to 1993.

From 1996 to 1999, he served as the first political commissar of the anti-aircraft artillery reserve division of Fujian Provincial Military Area Command, when he was deputy secretary of the CPC Fujian Provincial Committee.

> In 1999, Xi became vice director of the commission for national defense mobilization of Nanjing Military Area Command and director of Fujian provincial commission for national defense mobilization, when he was promoted to acting governor of Fujian Province.

> After a transfer to Zhejiang Province in 2002, Xi was appointed director of Zhejiang provincial commission for national defense mobilization. When Xi was promoted to secretary of the CPC Zhejiang Provincial Committee, he was appointed the first secretary of the Party committee of Zhejiang Provincial Military Area Command.

> Xi was first secretary of the Party committee of Shanghai Garrison when he was transferred to serve as secretary of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee in 2007.Guo Boxiong and Xu Caihou are the other two vice chairmen of the CPC Central Military Commission headed by President Hu Jintao.

Source: Xinhua