Wen, also member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), said that speeding up renovation of old industrial bases in northeast China is a strategic task raised by the 16th CPC National Congress.

During his tour of Liaoning, Wen inspected large state-owned enterprises of old industrial cities including Anshan, Benxi, Fushun and Shenyang, held seminars with local officials and enterprise leaders, visited factories and families of mining areas, and listened to the work report of the Liaoning provincial government and party committee.

Wen said the 16th Party Congress report recommended supporting old industrial bases in northeast China to accelerate their renovation, and supporting cities and areas focusing on resources exploitation to develop other sustaining industries, which is a major strategic plan of the CPC as China enters a new phase of its modernization process.

"Old industrial bases in northeast China have played an important role in national economic and social development, and made a great contribution to the country," said Wen, adding that for a variety of reasons, these areas are faced with many difficulties and problems.

Speeding up renovation of these industrial bases will help promote coordinated development of the local economy, strengthen the development potential of the national economy, push forward structural adjustment and deployment of state-owned enterprises, improve the international competition capacity of China's industries and enterprises and help maintain social stability.

Wen also noted that revitalizing old industrial bases is a long-term arduous task. He encouraged the use of new ideas, systems and methods to find new ways to renovate the old industrial bases.

The premier asked local governments to push forward strategic adjustment of the economic structure, deepen enterprise reform, accelerate the development of the social security system, implement a strategy of revitalizing the country through science, education and sustainable development, and give full play to the market forces in the process of renovating old industrial bases.

Local governments and party committees should give top priority to the task of speeding up old industrial base renovation, noted Wen.

Wen also inspected the Liaoning Provincial Center of Disease Control and Prevention on Monday, and visited medical workers and an exhibition on prevention products of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). He praised Liaoning for its achievement on SARS prevention and control work.

(Xinhua News Agency June 4, 2003)