Over the past 16 years following China's connection to the Internet, the global communications network has had a profound influence on the country's economic and social development. In today's China, more people are getting their daily information and learning everyday from the Internet. It has become an integral part of their lives, and has contributed to improving their standard of living by enriching their material, as well as cultural, life.

The Internet also serves as a forum for netizens to express their ideas and opinions online. The Internet is providing a more direct and convenient channel for the public to exercise their rights to know about, supervise and participate in public affairs, and to voice their opinions. And at the same time it helps the government learn about the wishes of its people. By the day, these online opinions receive an unprecedented amount of public and government attention.

The Internet has also become a career builder and source of job security. E-commerce provides tens of thousands of employment opportunities, giving more people more stages to demonstrate their knowledge and creativity.

Equally important, the Internet has become an impetus to transform China's economic development mode and develop its low-carbon economy.

Today in China, more and more people are communicating online with their relatives and friends overseas via the Internet. The Internet helps cultivate friendships between Chinese and people around the world. It has greatly broadened the Chinese people's views, and at the same time has helped the world gain a deeper understanding of China and the Chinese people's strong wish for peaceful development.

Because of its importance, we in China have reached a common understanding for the Internet. We want to make it stronger and more applicable, to govern it accordingly, and to make it more credible and practical so that this global network can contribute to economic and social development in China.

Ladies and gentlemen,

China's Internet has developed during the process of the country's reform and opening up, and has helped push this process forward, becoming a symbol of China's modernization. Looking to the future, we are confident of the benefits the Internet's development will have for China. The Chinese government fully realizes the importance of Internet in its national development. As such, the government will work to improve the Internet industry and to let it play a more active role in its economic, political, social, cultural and ecological development plans.

The government's plans are extensive and pioneering.

First, the Internet and its related industries will become new pillar industries in China's development. The Chinese government has been actively boosting the development of Internet and its related industries with strategic considerations. The information industry, with the Internet as its representative, will be a basic, pillar and leading industry in the national economy. The government will provide additional support for research and development, and application of new information technology such as the Internet of Things, in order to cultivate a conducive environment for the information industry's development.

The Chinese government will also take steps to integrate the development of Internet and economic entities, utilizing Internet technology to reform traditional industries to adjust traditional structures and transform the economic development mode. The Chinese government will also vigorously stimulate its e-commerce sector by improving online services, authentication systems and web-based logistics.

The cultural industry on the Internet will also be developed, with more favorable policies and a better market environment for online games, cartoons, audio and video programming.