Chinese President Hu Jintao Saturday said the tasks of increasing employment and helping laid-off workers to find jobs are vital to the Chinese people's direct interests, to the success of reforms and to the nation's stability.

Hu, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks Saturday while presiding over the third lecture for the members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.

He urged CPC committees at all levels and local governments to pay more attention to these tasks to ensure a higher rate of employment.

Zeng Xiangquan, professor at the People's University of China, and Cai Fang, researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, lectured on the issue.

During the discussion, Hu said China should persist in its long-term strategy and its policy of promoting employment.

The 16th CPC National Congress stressed the need to create job opportunities through all possible means. "We should include this task in the overall plan for economic and social development," said Hu.

He singled out the re-employment strategy for those laid off from state-owned enterprises (SOE).

The President said he hoped local governments will create more suitable jobs for laid-off workers and provide effective services to help them start their own businesses.

He also noted that the number of this July's college graduates will be double last year's number.

Hu emphasized the importance of improving on-the-job training for laid-off employees.

(Xinhua News Agency March 30, 2003)