"Inclusive growth," a term coined by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in 2007, is beginning to draw the public's attention in China after President Hu Jintao outlined the concept in a recent speech, China Economic Weekly reported.

At the opening ceremony of the Fifth Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Human Resources Development Ministerial Meeting held in Beijing on September 16, Hu made a speech titled "Deepen Exchanges and Cooperation for Inclusive Growth."

Hu said that the ultimate purpose of "inclusive growth" is to spread the benefits of economic growth among all people and to realize balanced economic and social progress. He put forward four proposals: giving priority to human resources development, implementing a strategy of full employment, improving the quality and competence of workers and building a social security system that ensures sustainable development.

Experts say that by using the term at an international meeting, Hu was sending a message that China's current GDP growth-oriented economic structure needs to be changed.

China has achieved great progress in the past three decades under a slogan raised by former leader Deng Xiaoping, architect of the country's reform and opening-up: "Let some people and some regions get rich first."

However, under the pursuit of efficiency and speed, resources and investment have all gone to certain industries, cities and coastal areas, causing bigger income disparities and deteriorating social justice, Professor Li Shi from Beijing Normal University, who was part of a study into "inclusive growth" undertaken by the ADB, told the Global Times.

The income disparity between the top and bottom 10 percent of earners has increased from 7.3 times in 1988 to 23 times in 2007, Li said.

China has already strengthened its efforts to tackle the problem this year. Since February, a total of 27 provinces and municipalities have raised minimum wage levels, and 20 increasing them by 20 percent.

Tang Min, chief economist with the ADB, believes that the essence of "inclusive growth" is to ensure those low-income earners can benefit from economic growth.

"I'm very glad to see that Hu mentioned the term in a formal setting. This is critical for China's future direction of development," he was quoted by the magazine as saying.

Deng Yuwen, a senior editor with the Study Times affiliated with the Party School of the CPC Central Committee, predicted that the term would be written into the 12th Five- Year Plan (2011-15) and will become accepted by more and more people.

Deng argued that the key to realizing the new growth pattern is to change the current system of assessing government performance, where GDP growth figures are used as the main index of success.

Some local governments have implemented a number of new practices to this end. Southwest China's Sichuan Province will stop requiring local governments to meet certain GDP targets and instead place a greater emphasis on other indicators, such as work safety and social stability.