Published : 2024-11-14

On November 14, 1993, the Third Plenary Session of the 14th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) adopted the "Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Some Issues Concerning the Establishment of a Socialist Market Economy System".

The "Decision" is the first programmatic document issued by the Central Committee of the CPC specifically regarding the formation of a "socialist market economy" (社會主義市場經濟).

In the early stages of Reform and Opening-up, China faced the ideological debate of "socialism equating to a planned economy, and capitalism equating to a market economy."

It was not until the "Southern Tour" speech of Deng Xiaoping (鄧小平) in 1992 that these dogmas were broken.

In the same year, the Central Committee of the CPC clearly set the establishment of a "socialist market economy system" as the goal of the reform. The issuance of the "Decision" was to address the question of "how to reform."

The "Decision" is divided into 10 parts with a total of 50 articles. In summary, it systematises and specifies the reform goals and basic principles.

The basic framework is to maintain public ownership as the mainstay, allowing the coexistence of various economic components, and to establish a modern enterprise system, a unified and open national market system, a comprehensive macro-control system, a reasonable income distribution system, and a multi-level social security system.

For example, "Transforming the Operating Mechanism of State-Owned Enterprises and Establishing a Modern Enterprise System" is stated in the second part, and the fifth part mentioned "Establishing a Reasonable Personal Income Distribution and Social Security System."

The "Decision" marks an important milestone in China's reform towards a "socialist market economy" system, initiating the transformation of its economic structure.