Reference News Network, November 12 report: The Pakistani weekly "Friday Times" website published an article titled "China's 14th Five-Year Plan: Strategic Adjustments and Resilience in a Turbulent World" on November 3. The author is Syed Shafqat, professor and founding director of the Center for Public Policy and Governance at Forman Christian College in Pakistan. The following is an excerpt from the article:

During President Trump's second term, the United States fell into a contradictory state: domestic social divisions intensified, while externally it became increasingly assertive.

Western media and scholars have begun to compare America's contradiction with China's stability and strategic clarity. In this context, China's "14th Five-Year Plan" and the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China are particularly important.

This article will explore two interrelated topics: first, the ongoing "othering" of China by Western media and policy analysts; second, the significance of China's latest five-year plan in understanding China's strategic logic in an unordered world.

Cognitive Misconceptions in the West

In recent times, analyses from Western outlets such as The Economist and American policy circles have overly focused on issues such as China's slowing economic growth and population decline.

This narrative of China heading toward turmoil is deeply rooted in Western thought. However, this view underestimates China's institutional adaptability and the government's ability to adjust strategies.

Senior China observers believe that a more profound and complex perspective is gradually taking shape. Jonathan Zee, a former CIA analyst, stated in his article that Washington's panic over Beijing stems from a deep misunderstanding of how China's system actually works. He wrote: "The painful irony is that China has proven that it is good at recognizing its shortcomings and taking measures to correct them. One could say that it even does better than the so-called flexible and adaptive United States."

China not only aims to achieve modernization but also to realize social revival: building a country that is digital, with high national quality, and confident in technology.

This observation captures a core point: China's political system coexists with the pragmatism of technocrats, and this pragmatism can be adjusted in ways that Western countries typically cannot achieve. The latest five-year plan vividly illustrates this situation.

The Plan Is Enlightening

I believe that the ideas behind China's "14th Five-Year Plan" can be divided into three main points: coordinated planning and policy synergy; science, technology, and human capital as drivers of growth; and the modernization of national defense and military-civilian integration.

By carefully reading the recommendations of the "14th Five-Year Plan," we can draw three insights.

First, it emphasizes institutional continuity with adaptability. The way the Chinese Communist Party plans reflects the connection between policy-making and implementation. Although the system appears to be hierarchical, it relies on feedback from local governments, enabling pragmatic adjustments. This internal flexibility explains why China's long-term planning has achieved remarkable results over the past few decades, unlike Western countries that often experience political turbulence.

Second, human capital and innovation are at the core of the national strategy. The "14th Five-Year Plan" recommends that in the 21st century, national strength depends not only on economic growth but also on the quality of human capital and technical capabilities. By prioritizing education, research, and skill development, China aims to cultivate "new quality productivity." The strategic shift from low-cost manufacturing to innovation-driven growth marks a structural evolution in China's development model.

Third, it insists on viewing security as development and promoting security through development. China considers economic vitality and citizen welfare as components of national security. The modernization of the military cannot be separated from social stability and prosperity. In this sense, the Chinese model integrates security and development, whereas Western paradigms often treat them as separate fields.

While Western analysts and policymakers debate the impact of China's "14th Five-Year Plan," it is wise for countries including Pakistan not to see it merely as China's own agenda, but rather as a case study in governance and resilience.

The lessons of the "14th Five-Year Plan" are clear: it is not only aimed at economic development, but also anchored in strategic positioning. Building internal capabilities, investing in innovation, balancing development and security, and monitoring global changes must become part of national policies. The "14th Five-Year Plan" provides a model, which we cannot simply copy, but should adapt to our own conditions. Pakistani institutions can draw valuable experiences from how China integrates planning, implementation, and accountability. The Chinese government's approach, based on repeated deliberations of previous plans, demonstrates how long-term strategies can coexist with adaptive governance.

In an increasingly disordered, turbulent, geopolitically fragmented, and technologically disruptive world, China's commitment to long-term planning shows that when structural reforms are combined with institutional flexibility, it remains an indispensable tool for dealing with uncertainty. (Translated by Hu Wei)

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7571740592342860322/

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