The 5th Plenary Session of the 19th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee was a meeting of extraordinary significance held at a time when China is poised to achieve its first centenary goal of completing the development of a moderately prosperous society, and embarking on a journey to the construction a complete modern socialist country. The most important outcome of the Plenary Session was the adoption of the CPC Central Committee’s Proposals for Formulating the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) for National Economic and Social Development and the Long-Range Objectives Through the Year 2035 (the Proposals), which is a crucial document that will guide China’s new era of development. A "new development stage, new development philosophy, and new development pattern" form the essence of the Proposals.

The Proposals, driven by a new development philosophy of "innovation, coordination, green, openness and sharing", include an in depth analysis of the international and domestic backdrop to China’s development, and looks at the long-range objectives in this new era focused on high-quality development. The Proposals use these to define the development objectives for the 14th Five-Year Plan period, and a new, "dual circulation" economic pattern wherein domestic and foreign markets can boost each other, the domestic market is the central element, and there is a strategic focus on expanding domestic demand to enhance the effect of final consumption on GDP. Scientific and technological innovation will be key to this new development pattern, and efforts in these areas are set to intensify.