Enhancing the Consistency of Macro-Policy Orientations to Release the Synergistic Effects of Multiple Strategy Overlays

The 2024 Central Economic Work Conference[1]1 The 2024 Central Economic Work Conference: The annual high-level meeting convened by the CPC Central Committee to set the economic policy agenda for the upcoming year. proposed leveraging the synergistic effects of the regional coordinated development strategy, the major regional strategies, and the main functional zone strategy[2]2 The main functional zone strategy: A national spatial planning strategy that divides China's territory into zones for optimized development, key development, restricted development, and prohibited development.. Currently, the overlapping and stacking of different regional strategies has become normal: for example, Shaanxi and Gansu belong both to the Western Development Strategy[3]3 Western Development Strategy: A major national strategy launched in 2000 to accelerate the development of China's western regions. region and to the Yellow River Basin Ecological Protection and High-Quality Development Strategy[4]4 Yellow River Basin Ecological Protection and High-Quality Development Strategy: A national strategy elevated in 2019 focusing on ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin. region; Henan and Shanxi belong both to the Yellow River Basin Ecological Protection and High-Quality Development Strategy[4]4 Yellow River Basin Ecological Protection and High-Quality Development Strategy: A national strategy elevated in 2019 focusing on ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin. region and to the Rise of Central China Strategy[5]5 Rise of Central China Strategy: A strategy initiated in 2004 to promote the development of central Chinese provinces. region; Anhui has become the only province where three major regional strategies—the Yangtze River Delta Integrated Development[6]6 Yangtze River Delta Integrated Development: A national strategy since 2018 for the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta region (Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui)., the Rise of Central China Strategy[5]5 Rise of Central China Strategy: A strategy initiated in 2004 to promote the development of central Chinese provinces., and the Yangtze River Economic Belt Development[7]7 Yangtze River Economic Belt Development: A national strategy proposed in 2013 to develop the Yangtze River Economic Belt covering 11 provinces and municipalities.—overlap. In October 2024, when General Secretary Xi Jinping inspected Anhui[8]8 General Secretary Xi Jinping's inspection of Anhui in October 2024: Xi Jinping visited Anhui Province, emphasizing leveraging multiple national development strategies., he pointed out that Anhui should "leverage the superimposed advantages of multiple national development strategies" and "use deepening the Yangtze River Delta integrated development as a lever to drive coordinated regional development within the province and play a greater role in the Yangtze River Economic Belt development and the Rise of Central China strategy." The overlapping coverage of multiple regional strategies provides rare opportunities for localities to pool and allocate resources on a larger scale and at a higher level. At the same time, it must be noted that in local practice, problems such as regional segmentation and protectionism and administrative barriers that affect the efficiency of resource allocation, lack of coordination between planning objectives and policy tools, insufficient support from specialized plans for overall plans, and inadequate overall coordination of fiscal, financial, industrial, regional and other policies with national strategies and development plans, have hampered the full release of the overall effectiveness of regional strategies.

2024年中央经济工作会议提出，发挥区域协调发展战略、区域重大战略、主体功能区战略的叠加效应。当前，不同区域战略之间的交叉叠加已经成为常态，如：陕西、甘肃既属于西部大开发战略区域，也属于黄河流域生态保护和高质量发展战略区域；河南、山西既属于黄河流域生态保护和高质量发展战略区域，也属于中部地区崛起战略区域；安徽更是成为长三角一体化发展、中部地区崛起、长江经济带发展三大区域战略叠加的唯一省份。2024年10月，习近平总书记在安徽考察时指出，安徽要“发挥多重国家发展战略叠加优势”“以深入推进长三角一体化发展为牵引，带动省域内区域协调发展，在长江经济带发展、中部地区崛起战略中发挥更大作用”。多重区域战略叠加覆盖，为地方在更大范围、更高层次上集聚配置资源提供了难得的机遇。同时也要看到，在各地实践中，还存在区域间分割保护和行政壁垒影响资源要素配置效率，规划目标与政策工具不协同，专项规划对总体规划支撑不足，财税、金融、产业、区域等政策与国家战略和发展规划统筹协调不够等问题，影响了区域战略整体效能的充分释放。

Since the end of 2023, important meetings and documents such as the Central Economic Work Conference[1]1 The 2024 Central Economic Work Conference: The annual high-level meeting convened by the CPC Central Committee to set the economic policy agenda for the upcoming year., the meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee[9]9 The meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee: A regular top-level meeting of the Communist Party of China's Political Bureau, a key leadership body., and the Government Work Report[10]10 The Government Work Report: The annual report delivered by the Premier of the State Council to the National People's Congress, outlining government work and policy directions. have repeatedly stressed the need to "enhance the consistency of macro-policy orientations." The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC[11]11 The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC: The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, held in July 2024, which focused on further deepening reform comprehensively. proposed that "we must improve the macro-control system, coordinate the promotion of reforms in key areas such as fiscal and financial systems, and enhance the consistency of macro-policy orientations." On October 8, 2024, the State Council held its tenth special study session on the theme of "enhancing the consistency of macro-policy orientations and strengthening policy coordination to improve implementation effects," emphasizing the need to strengthen policy coordination and inter-departmental collaboration, combine policy tools into a "combined punch," and form a strong synergy of all parties to jointly promote high-quality development[12]12 High-quality development: A central concept in Chinese economic policy emphasizing innovation, coordination, green growth, openness, and sharing as drivers of development.. Facing intertwined strategic spaces and objectives, enhancing the consistency of macro-policy orientations and releasing the superimposed advantages of multiple regional strategies have become important levers for improving the effectiveness of regional governance, and are also important measures for giving full play to the unique advantages of the socialist system with Chinese characteristics and advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capability. The key is to achieve consistency of orientation in the overall layout, consistency of orientation in the institutional system, and consistency of orientation in policy implementation.

2023年底以来，中央经济工作会议、中央政治局会议、《政府工作报告》等重要会议和文件都反复强调要“增强宏观政策取向一致性”。党的二十届三中全会提出，“必须完善宏观调控制度体系，统筹推进财税、金融等重点领域改革，增强宏观政策取向一致性”。2024年10月8日，国务院以“增强宏观政策取向一致性，强化政策协同提升实施效果”为主题，进行第十次专题学习，强调要强化政策统筹和部门协同，打好政策“组合拳”，形成各方面共同推动高质量发展的强大合力。面对相互交织的战略空间和目标任务，增强宏观政策取向一致性，释放多重区域战略叠加优势，成为提升区域治理效能的重要抓手，也是发挥中国特色社会主义制度独特优势、推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化的重要举措，其重点是要实现总体布局的取向一致、制度体系的取向一致、制度执行的取向一致。

With the goal of consistency of orientation in the overall layout, we should improve the in-depth integration mechanism. Consistency of orientation in the overall layout means that in the measures to further deepen comprehensive reform, multiple regional strategies should form a joint force and achieve a synergistic overall effect. For example, Shaanxi and Gansu and other places should clarify the macro-policy orientations of the two major strategies of Western Development[3]3 Western Development Strategy: A major national strategy launched in 2000 to accelerate the development of China's western regions. and Yellow River Basin Ecological Protection and High-Quality Development[4]4 Yellow River Basin Ecological Protection and High-Quality Development Strategy: A national strategy elevated in 2019 focusing on ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin., conduct in-depth research on the correlation and interaction between the two strategies, build an in-depth integration mechanism for the overlapping operation of strategies, cultivate new drivers of regional development, highlight the core advantages of strategic superposition, set diversified development goals, and promote regional high-quality development[12]12 High-quality development: A central concept in Chinese economic policy emphasizing innovation, coordination, green growth, openness, and sharing as drivers of development.. For Anhui Province, which is located in the overlap zone of three major regional strategies—the Yangtze River Delta Integrated Development[6]6 Yangtze River Delta Integrated Development: A national strategy since 2018 for the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta region (Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui)., the Rise of Central China Strategy[5]5 Rise of Central China Strategy: A strategy initiated in 2004 to promote the development of central Chinese provinces., and the Yangtze River Economic Belt Development[7]7 Yangtze River Economic Belt Development: A national strategy proposed in 2013 to develop the Yangtze River Economic Belt covering 11 provinces and municipalities.—it should treat the three strategies as an organic whole, take deepening the Yangtze River Delta integrated development as the lever, simultaneously deepen the integration of industry and city development and the innovation of management systems and mechanisms between Anhui and the central provinces and adjacent areas of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, accelerate the autonomous and orderly flow of factors, and by exploring new pathways for cross-administrative-region integrated development, make sustained efforts to become a source of scientific and technological innovation with significant influence, a gathering place for emerging industries, a new highland of reform and opening up, and a zone of comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development.

以总体布局取向一致为目标，健全深度融合机制。总体布局的取向一致，指的是要在进一步全面深化改革的举措中，使多重区域战略形成合力，达到协同增效的整体效应。比如，陕西、甘肃等地应明确西部大开发和黄河流域生态保护和高质量发展两大战略的宏观政策取向，深入研究两大战略的相关性和互动性，构建战略叠加运行的深度融合机制，培育区域发展新动能，突出战略叠加核心优势，制定多元化的发展目标，推动区域高质量发展。对处于长三角一体化发展、中部地区崛起、长江经济带发展三大区域战略叠加地带的安徽省而言，要将三大战略作为一个有机整体，以深入推进长三角一体化发展为牵引，同步深化安徽与中部省份和长江经济带各毗邻地区产城融合发展和管理体制机制创新，加快推动要素自主有序流动，通过探索跨行政区融合发展新路径，在打造具有重要影响力的科技创新策源地、新兴产业聚集地、改革开放新高地、经济社会发展全面绿色转型区上持续发力。

With the goal of consistency of orientation in the institutional system, we should improve the overall coordination mechanism. Consistency of orientation in the institutional sphere is a complete set of closely linked and mutually coordinated institutional mechanisms, laws, and regulations arrangements, covering the fields of economy, politics, culture, society, ecological civilization, and Party building[13]13 Party building: The self-construction and strengthening of the Communist Party of China, including its organization, discipline, ideology, and style.. To achieve consistency of orientation at the institutional level, it is necessary to clarify the relationship between the overall policy arrangement and a specific policy, between the systemic policy chain and a particular policy link, between top-level policy design and policy layered connection, between policy uniformity and policy difference, and between long-term policies and phased policies. Neither the part should replace the whole nor the whole replace the part; neither flexibility should harm principledness nor principledness bind flexibility. To this end, it is necessary to build a complete institutional system of laws, regulations, institutional mechanisms, and policy measures for regional development strategies at both the central and local levels around the implementation of national strategies and national development plans. We should strengthen macro-policy coordination and cooperation, include both economic and non-economic policies in the assessment of macro-policy orientation consistency, coordinate the timing, intensity, and pace of policy introduction, strengthen all parties' understanding, execution, and transmission of policies, and promote the coordinated efforts of fiscal, monetary, industrial, price, employment, investment, consumption, and environmental protection policies, maximizing the mobilization of all parties' initiative to form policy synergy.

以制度体系取向一致为目标，健全统筹协调机制。制度领域的取向一致，是一整套紧密相连、相互协调的体制机制、法律法规安排，包括经济、政治、文化、社会、生态文明和党的建设等领域。实现制度层面的取向一致，需要弄清楚整体政策安排与某一具体政策的关系、系统政策链条与某一政策环节的关系、政策顶层设计与政策分层对接的关系、政策统一性与政策差异性的关系、长期性政策与阶段性政策的关系，既不能以局部代替整体、也不能以整体代替局部，既不能以灵活性损害原则性、也不能以原则性束缚灵活性。为此，需要围绕实施国家战略和国家发展规划，将中央和地方层面区域发展战略的法律规章、体制机制和政策措施构建成为一个完整的制度体系。加强宏观政策协调配合，将经济政策和非经济性政策都纳入宏观政策取向一致性评估，统筹把握好政策出台时机、力度、节奏，强化各方面对政策的理解、执行和传导，推进财政、货币、产业、价格、就业、投资、消费、环保等政策协同发力，最大限度调动各方面积极性，形成政策合力。

With the goal of consistency of orientation in policy implementation, we should improve the linkage and implementation mechanism. "One part is deployment, nine parts are implementation."[14]14 "One part is deployment, nine parts are implementation": A Chinese political saying emphasizing that implementation is more important than planning. We must comprehensively assess the impacts of multiple regional development strategies on economic development, stabilizing expectations, employment and people's livelihoods, etc., achieve organic linkage and mutual support vertically among the institutional fields of economy, politics, culture, society, ecological civilization, and Party building[13]13 Party building: The self-construction and strengthening of the Communist Party of China, including its organization, discipline, ideology, and style.; achieve linkage horizontally between different levels of institutions; and coordinate temporally the successive and feedback relationships of plans, programs, budgets, projects, outputs, and results, so as to enhance the consistency of the entire process of policy formulation and implementation with the overall objectives of multiple strategies. We should strengthen the organic linkage of various regional development strategy plans, strengthen the organic linkage of specialized plans, regional plans, spatial plans, and local plans with national development plans; give play to the guiding role of national development strategies, strengthen the foundational role of spatial plans, and enhance the supporting role of specialized plans and regional plans; improve the mechanism for promoting and implementing strategic plans, refine the policy system for implementation, and strive to improve the consistency and matching of policy objectives, tools, intensity, timing, and pace at all levels. Before policies are introduced, they must undergo consistency assessment; when policies are implemented or adjusted, they must maintain consistent orientation with macro-policy orientation; after policies are implemented, their effects should be promptly reviewed and evaluated; policies that are inconsistent with the governance objectives should be adjusted or suspended.

以政策执行取向一致为目标，健全衔接落实机制。“一分部署,九分落实。”综合评估多重区域发展战略对经济发展、稳定预期、就业民生等方面的影响，在横向上实现经济、政治、文化、社会、生态文明和党的建设等制度领域之间的有机衔接和相互支撑；在纵向上实现不同层级制度之间的衔接；在时间上统筹好规划、计划、预算、项目、产出、结果的前后相继和反馈影响关系，增强政策制定和执行全过程与多重战略的整体目标取向一致。强化各项区域发展战略规划的有机衔接，强化专项规划、区域规划、空间规划、地方规划与国家发展规划的有机衔接；发挥国家发展战略导向作用，强化空间规划基础作用，增强专项规划和区域规划支撑作用；健全战略规划推进落实机制，细化落实政策体系，着力提升各层面政策目标、工具、力度、时机、节奏的一致性和匹配度。政策出台前，必须经过一致性评估；政策执行或调整时，要与宏观政策取向持续保持一致；政策落地后，对政策效果及时检视评估，对于与治理目标取向不一致的政策要及时调整或暂停执行。

(The authors: Hao Zheng and Ni Liangxin, both are researchers at the Research Base of the Anhui Provincial Committee Party School of the Research Center for the Theoretical System of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics in Anhui Province.)

（作者：郝政、倪良新，均系安徽省中国特色社会主义理论体系研究中心省委党校研究基地研究员）

Online editor: Huihui

网络编辑：慧慧