高培勇：中国经济升级须从“投资于物”转向“投资于人”

Core Viewpoint - The core argument presented by Gao Peiyong emphasizes the necessity of integrating "investment in people" with "investment in material" to address current economic challenges and support the goal of achieving basic socialist modernization by 2035 [1] Group 1: Economic Context and Goals - The 20th Central Committee's Fourth Plenary Session highlights the need for decisive progress in achieving socialist modernization during the 14th Five-Year Plan, with specific quantitative indicators linked to per capita GDP reaching the level of moderately developed countries [1] - Current per capita GDP in China is approximately $13,500, while the target for moderately developed countries is between $25,000 and $26,000, indicating a need to double per capita GDP within the next decade [1] Group 2: Investment Strategy - Gao stresses that relying solely on traditional material capital investment is insufficient for sustained growth, advocating for a shift towards investing in human development to stimulate domestic demand and drive economic structural upgrades [1] - The current economic challenge of weak domestic demand and pessimistic expectations is identified, with weak expectations being the root cause of the observed decline in consumption growth [2] Group 3: Government Spending and Structural Adjustment - A systematic adjustment in government spending is necessary, which involves reducing expenditures on material investments while increasing those on human investments, thereby enhancing public service spending and optimizing the overall consumption investment structure [2] - The transition from a material-focused fiscal system to a public finance model is highlighted as a critical phase, necessitating proactive measures to drive this profound change in resource allocation [2] Group 4: Social Security and Transfer Payment System - The urgency of modernizing the social security and transfer payment system is emphasized, with current shortcomings including selective coverage, varying benefits, insufficient public service funding, and a lack of significant redistributive function [3] - The establishment of a modern social security system aims to eliminate urban-rural disparities and identity differences, ensuring universal applicability of the protection system to all citizens [3] Group 5: Proposed Reforms - Three specific reform measures are proposed: 1. Accelerate the adjustment of fiscal expenditure structure by significantly increasing the proportion of social welfare spending while reducing economic construction spending [4] 2. Improve the social security system by promoting nationwide coordination of basic pension insurance to achieve full coverage of the legally defined population [4] 3. Enhance the transfer payment system by establishing a demand-oriented precise transfer payment system to equalize social assistance within provincial administrative regions [4] - The establishment of a modern social security and transfer payment system, along with enhancing the equity and accessibility of basic public services, is deemed essential for the effective functioning of a proactive government [4]