Premier Li Keqiang emphasized the role of promoting infrastructure construction and an easy business environment in pushing forward the development of the western region during a meeting of the steering group on western development on Aug 21.

Under the leadership of President Xi Jinping, the western region’s economic and social development has achieved historical results, which in turn have made a great contribution to national development, Premier Li said.

“Despite such achievements, the region still needs sustainable development in the long run, which remains a daunting task. With its great development potential, China should stick to the opening-up policy while expanding its domestic demand,” Premier Li added.

He also stressed the importance of the western region’s development, which will support the economy through further tapping into the country’s economic development potential and enhancing the ability to prevent latent risks.

“The upgrading of the western region’s economy will help China lay a solid foundation for realizing ultimate transformation and upgrading of its national economy,” the Premier said.

He explained that China’s success in its own development has been relying on opening-up and innovation, which also should be the right track to further close the gap between western and eastern regions.

“To lift up its own development ability, the western region should create an easy business environment through deepening administrative reform in terms of targeting major issues faced by enterprises and people and lowering institutional costs,” Premier Li said.

In addition, he added that besides the business environment, infrastructure construction should be equally emphasized. An innovation mechanism should be introduced so that more private investment can be encouraged to fully set off society and the market’s potential.

Premier Li recalled his inspection tour to the Tibet autonomous region in July, during which he visited an innovation center. There, the Premier learned that some college graduates had quit their jobs as civil servants and started their own businesses, which would have been inconceivable in the past, while others tapped huge potential in the market with their plateau-featured products by cooperating with big enterprises.

“Authorities in the western region should enhance support for entrepreneurship and innovation, so as to stimulate people’s wisdom and creativity,” Premier Li said, while applauding successful experiences made by some regions in fields such as Internet Plus agricultural products’ marketing, Internet Plus healthcare and Internet Plus education.

“I hope reform and opening-up in the western region will be promoted to a higher level, to inject more impetus into the economic development,” he added.