Powerful task force set up to lead China in ambitious manufacturing upgrade
Senior officials from various departments appointed to lead ambitious plan to transform the manufacturing sector over the next decade
A powerful interdepartmental task force has been set up to overhaul the country's manufacturing sector amid a protracted economic downturn.
Vice-Premier Ma Kai will head the central leading group tasked to implement the "Made in China 2025" initiative and strengthen coordination, planning and policymaking in carrying out the strategy, the State Council said on Wednesday.
Industry and Information Technology Minister Miao Wei and four deputy ministers were appointed the task force's deputy heads.
The group comprises officials - most of them vice-minister level - from 25 central ministries and agencies, including the central bank, commerce ministry and planning agency.
The country's annual rate of growth, which averaged 10 per cent between 1982 and 2012, slowed to 7 per cent in the first quarter of the year, signalling the end of its high-growth period.
Analysts say the setting up of the task force shows the central government's determination to push forward an industrial upgrade amid the downturn.
"The establishment of a task force demonstrates the leadership's attention towards 'industrialisation 4.0'," said Hong Hao , chief economist and managing director of investment bank Bocom International.