Page 23 - REPORT ON THE WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT

registered steady progress in a wide range of areas. The construction of the New
International Land-Sea Trade Corridor was advanced in the western region.

We provided guidance which ensured sound and orderly development of
outbound investment, and we strengthened overseas risk prevention and control.
Six free trade agreements were newly concluded or upgraded; and the share of
trade with our free trade partners increased from 26 percent to around 35 percent

of China’s total trade volume.
We remained firm in upholding the multilateral trading regime and opposed
trade protectionism. We properly handled economic and trade frictions and
promoted trade and investment liberalization and facilitation.

8. We strengthened environmental protection and pursued green and low-carbon
development.
Staying true to the idea that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable
assets, we improved systems of ecological conservation, struck a balance between
development and conservation, and steadily built up our capacity for promoting

sustainable development.
We strengthened pollution control and ecological conservation. Applying
targeted, law-based, and science-driven approaches, we worked harder to prevent
and control pollution. We made major efforts to control multiple pollutants in a

coordinated way and across all regions. In cities at and above the prefectural level,
air quality was good or excellent on 86.5% of the days over the past five years, a
4-percentage-point increase.
Black malodorous water bodies in cities at and above the prefectural level were
generally cleaned up. We intensified pollution prevention and control for major

rivers, lakes, and offshore areas. We also strengthened efforts to prevent and
control soil pollution risks and restore polluted soil, and stepped up the treatment
of solid waste and new pollutants.

We completed the tasks of drawing redlines to protect ecosystems, farmland,
and permanent basic cropland and of delineating urban development boundaries.
We promoted the conservation and improvement of mountains, waters, forests,
farmlands, grasslands, and deserts in a holistic and systematic way. We launched
major ecological projects and instituted systems of river, lake, and forest chiefs

nationwide. A well-coordinated approach was adopted for protecting the Yangtze
River, and the 10-year ban on fishing in key water bodies of the Yangtze River
basin was fully enforced. Biodiversity protection was bolstered, and the system of

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