Taking Institutional Development as the Main Line to Lead the Further Comprehensive Deepening of Reform and Opening Up

The “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Opening Up to Advance Chinese-Path Modernization” (hereinafter referred to as the “Decision”), adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, proposes that one of the basic principles for further comprehensively deepening reform and opening up is to adhere to taking institutional development as the main line, strengthen top-level design and overall planning, promote both establishment and abolition while prioritizing establishment over abolition, consolidate fundamental institutions, improve basic institutions, and innovate important institutions. The Decision’s confirmation of the main line for further comprehensively deepening reform and opening up is both a summary of the historical experience of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up in the New Era and a guide for action in further comprehensively deepening reform and opening up on the new journey. It holds important theoretical and practical significance for our profound understanding of the spirit of the plenary session and for practicing the further comprehensive deepening of reform and opening up. This article, from the perspective of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up in the New Era, elaborates on the basic theory of institutional development, in order to verify the laws of institutional development in comprehensively deepening reform and opening up.

党的二十届三中全会通过的《中共中央关于进一步全面深化改革、推进中国式现代化的决定》（以下简称《决定》）提出，进一步全面深化改革的基本原则之一，是坚持以制度建设为主线，加强顶层设计、总体谋划，破立并举、先立后破，筑牢根本制度，完善基本制度，创新重要制度。《决定》关于进一步全面深化改革的主线的确认，既是对于新时代全面深化改革历史经验的总结，也是新征程上进一步全面深化改革的行动指南，对于我们深刻领会全会精神，践行进一步全面深化改革，具有重要的理论与现实意义。本文从新时代全面深化改革的视角出发，阐述制度建设的基本理论，以求证全面深化改革的制度建设规律。

I. The Profound Connotation of Institutional Development for Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Opening Up

一、制度建设对于全面深化改革的深刻内涵

Institutions are an integration of a series of rules, norms, laws, and regulations that are socially recognized to constrain and incentivize people’s behavior. They are usually composed of formal rules, informal rules, and enforcement mechanisms, possessing authority, normativity, stability, and universality. They play a leading and guaranteeing role in social operation and development, serving both as the rule and order foundation for the operation and development of a modern state and as an important carrier for national modernization construction and development.

制度是得到社会认可的约束和激励人们行为的一系列规则、规范、法律和法规的集成，它们通常由正式规则、非正式规则和实施机制构成，具有权威性、规范性、稳定性和普遍性，对于社会运行和发展具有挈领和保障作用，既是现代国家运行和发展的规则和秩序基础，也是国家现代化建设和发展的重要载体。

In the process of modernization, institutional development refers to a process in which a state, in accordance with the requirements of modernization development and based on the fundamental values of the state, regulates the behavior and mutual relations of social members in a rule-based manner. Through institutional optimization and innovation, it gradually constitutes the national governance system, improves national governance capacity, stimulates social vitality, promotes the development of productive forces, and achieves national political stability and enduring peace and security.

在现代化进程中，制度建设是指一个国家按照现代化发展的要求，基于国家根本价值，以规则化的方式，对于社会成员的行为及其相互关系加以规范，在制度优化和创新中逐步构成国家治理体系，提高国家治理能力，激发社会活力，推进生产力发展，实现国家政治稳定和长治久安的过程。

The history of world modernization shows that institutional advantage is the greatest advantage of a country, and institutional competition is the most fundamental competition between countries. In the new period of China’s reform and opening up, especially in the process of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up in the New Era, institutions have an even more fundamental, decisive, and long-term significance. In the early days of reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping profoundly pointed out that “institutional issues are more fundamental, overarching, stable, and long-term.” After the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that “institutions are fundamental, overarching, stable, and long-term issues concerning the development of the Party and the state’s undertakings.” This profoundly reveals the significant importance of institutions for the development of the Party and the state’s undertakings in the New Era.

世界现代化的历史表明，制度优势是一个国家的最大优势，制度竞争是国家间最根本的竞争。在我国改革开放新时期尤其是新时代全面深化改革的进程中，制度更具有根本性、决定性和长期性意义。改革开放初期，邓小平深刻指出“制度问题更带有根本性、全局性、稳定性和长期性”。党的十八大后，习近平总书记强调，“制度是关系党和国家事业发展的根本性、全局性、稳定性、长期性问题。”由此深刻揭示了制度对于新时代党和国家事业发展的重要意义。

The significant importance of institutions determines the rich and profound connotation of institutional development for comprehensively deepening reform and opening up in the New Era. In the process of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up, relative to other elements and pathways, institutional development is a key choice for ensuring the political direction of reform, stimulating the vitality of social development, and providing strong impetus and rule-based guarantees for modernization development. It is a fundamental measure of overarching, long-term, and enduring significance for ensuring the steady and sustained progress of Chinese-path modernization.

制度的重要意义决定了制度建设对于新时代全面深化改革丰富而深刻的内涵。在全面深化改革的进程中，相对于其他要素和路径，制度建设是确保改革的政治方向，激发社会发展活力，为现代化发展提供强大动力和规则保障的关键选择，是保障中国式现代化行稳致远的全局性、长期性和持久性的根本举措。

Since the beginning of the New Era, the Party and the state have placed institutional development in a more prominent position, giving it greater weight, thereby forming a new characteristic of reform and opening up in the New Era. Promoting the comprehensive deepening of reform and opening up with institutional development as the main line prominently demonstrates the strategic thinking of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up in the New Era, which focuses on guiding the overall situation by grasping the key, highlighting priorities, and seizing the principal aspect of the principal contradiction. It reflects a profound grasp of the laws governing comprehensively deepening reform and opening up.

新时代以来，党和国家把制度建设摆到更加突出的位置，制度建设分量更重，由此形成了新时代改革开放的一个新特点。以制度建设为主线推进全面深化改革，突出显示了新时代全面深化改革牵引关键、突出重点和引领全局，抓住主要矛盾的主要方面的战略思路，体现着对于全面深化改革规律的深刻把握。

The driving force of institutional development is the development of the basic contradictions of society and the principal contradiction. Historical materialism holds that the fundamental motivation for institutional development and institutional change is the contradictory movement between productive forces and relations of production, and between the economic base and the superstructure. It is the requirement of changes in the principal contradiction of society, which is the concrete manifestation of the basic contradictions of society. Based on the principles of historical materialism, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that, facing the principal contradictions and derivative problems in China’s development on the new journey, “it is necessary to further comprehensively deepen reform and opening up, and promote solutions from the institutional mechanisms.”

制度建设的动力是社会基本矛盾和主要矛盾的发展。历史唯物主义认为，制度建设和制度变迁的根本动因是生产力与生产关系、经济基础与上层建筑之间的矛盾运动，是作为社会基本矛盾具体体现的社会主要矛盾的变化要求。习近平总书记根据历史唯物主义原理指出，面对新征程上我国发展面临的主要矛盾和衍生问题，“必须进一步全面深化改革，从体制机制上推动解决。”

The Decision, starting from the six “inevitable requirements,” logically elaborates on the historical inevitability and practical necessity of taking institutional development as the main line to lead the further comprehensive deepening of reform and opening up on the new journey of the New Era. It points out that the starting point for taking institutional development as the main line to lead the further comprehensive deepening of reform and opening up lies in further liberating and developing social productive forces, stimulating and enhancing social vitality, thereby promoting better adaptation between relations of production and productive forces, between the superstructure and the economic base, and between national governance and social development, providing strong impetus and institutional guarantees for Chinese-path modernization.

《决定》从六个“必然要求”出发，逻辑地阐述了新时代新征程以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革的历史必然性和现实必要性，指出以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革的出发点在于，进一步解放和发展社会生产力、激发和增强社会活力，由此推动生产关系和生产力、上层建筑和经济基础、国家治理和社会发展更好相适应，为中国式现代化提供强大动力和制度保障。

Institutional development adheres to seeking truth from facts and proceeds from reality to promote the comprehensive deepening of reform and opening up. Seeking truth from facts and proceeding from reality are fundamental principles of Marxism. China’s reform and opening up undertaking was initiated and unfolded by adhering to the principle of seeking truth from facts. The Decision, through the “seven focal points,” closely integrates a problem-oriented approach with a goal-oriented approach, earnestly implements the fundamental principle of seeking truth from facts, and elucidates the conformity with laws, purposes, national conditions, and development of further comprehensively deepening reform and opening up on the new journey of the New Era. In the “Explanation on the ‘Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Opening Up to Advance Chinese-Path Modernization’,” General Secretary Xi Jinping summarized and condensed this using the “four urgent needs,” clarifying the realistic foundation for further comprehensively deepening reform and opening up on the new journey of the New Era, and highlighting the urgency of matching and balancing institutional development with the nature, level, stage, requirements, and other institutional environments of Chinese-path modernization development. Thus, institutional development is indeed an inherent requirement and inevitable choice for comprehensively deepening reform and opening up and modernization development.

制度建设秉持实事求是，从实际出发的原则推进全面深化改革。实事求是，从实际出发，是马克思主义的根本原则，中国的改革开放事业，即是秉持实事求是的原则启动和展开的。《决定》以“七个聚焦 ”，从问题取向与目标取向紧密结合出发，切实贯彻实事求是根本原则，阐发了新时代新征程进一步全面深化改革的合规律性、合目的性、合国情性和合发展性。在《关于〈中共中央关于进一步全面深化改革、推进中国式现代化的决定〉的说明》中，习近平总书记用“四个迫切需要”作了概括凝练，阐明了新时代新征程上进一步全面深化改革的现实基础，彰显了推进制度建设与中国式现代化发展的性质、水平、阶段和要求等制度环境之间匹配、均衡的迫切性。由此可见，制度建设实是全面深化改革和现代化发展的内在要求和必然选择。

Institutional development implies the adjustment of social interest relations and interest structures. In social life, economic relations and the social relations derived from them are realistically manifested as interest relations and interest structures among social members. Therefore, interest relations and interest patterns are the foundation of the modern national governance institutional system. “Under the new circumstances, if interest relations are not well coordinated and various contradictions are not well handled, problems will intensify, and in severe cases, it will affect the development process.” Therefore, adjusting and optimizing interest relations and interest patterns is a basic task of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up and advancing Chinese-path modernization. On the basis of optimizing and adjusting social interest relations and interest patterns, institutional development, through rule optimization and innovation, breaks down the barriers of vested interests, leading and promoting the growth, formation, and maturation of fair, just, and reasonable interest relations and interest patterns.

制度建设意味着社会利益关系和利益结构的调整。在社会生活中，经济关系及其衍生的社会关系，现实地体现为社会成员之间的利益关系和利益结构。因此，利益关系和利益格局是现代国家治理制度体系的基础。“新形势下，如果利益关系协调不好、各种矛盾处理不好，就会导致问题激化，严重的就会影响发展进程。”因此，调整和优化利益关系和利益格局，是全面深化改革，推进中国式现代化的基本内容。在优化和调整社会利益关系和利益格局的基础上，制度建设以规则优化和创新方式，打破既得利益的藩篱，挈领和推进公平公正合理的利益关系和利益格局成长、成型和成熟。

Institutional development promotes the adjustment, optimization, improvement, and development of the relationship between power and rights. In comprehensively deepening reform and opening up, institutional development first involves the allocation of power and the adjustment of power relations, including optimizing the setup of political institutions such as the ruling party and the state, and adjusting the allocation of power and power relations between the government and the market, the state and society, and the central and local authorities. Secondly, institutional development involves the improvement of the relationship between state political power and responsibility. General Secretary Xi Jinping points out that power implies responsibility; “where there is power, there is responsibility; power and responsibility must be matched.” “If problems arise, responsibility must be investigated.” Thirdly, institutional development involves the optimization of the relationship between power and rights. The socialist state is a state where the people are the masters under the leadership of the Communist Party of China. All state power comes from the people, is accountable to the people, and is subject to the supervision of the people. Optimizing and building institutions according to the principle of popular sovereignty is an important way to promote socialist rule of law and whole-process people’s democracy. Fourthly, institutional development involves the improvement of the relationship between citizens’ rights and obligations. According to the requirements of law-based governance in the New Era, the relationship between citizens’ rights and obligations is optimized and adjusted, and then determined and standardized by institutions. Thus, so-called institutional development is in fact the institutional optimization and construction of these power and rights relations.

制度建设促进权力与权利关系的调整、优化、完善和发展。在全面深化改革中，制度建设首先涉及权力配置和权力关系调整，包括优化执政党与国家等政治机构设置、调整政府与市场、国家与社会、中央与地方的权力配置和权力关系。其次，制度建设涉及国家政治权力与责任关系完善，习近平总书记指出，权力意味着责任，“有权就有责，权责要对等。”“出了问题，就要追究责任。”第三，制度建设涉及权力与权利的关系优化。社会主义国家是中国共产党领导人民当家作主的国家，国家的一切权力来自人民，对人民负责，受人民监督，按照人民主权原则优化和建设制度，是促进社会主义法治和全过程人民民主的重要途径。第四，制度建设涉及公民权利与义务关系的改进。按照新时代全面依法治国要求，优化和调整公民的权利与义务关系，并且以制度予以确定和规范。由此可见，所谓制度建设，实则是对于这些权力和权利关系的制度性优化和构建。

Institutional building is the holistic, systematic, and synergistic optimization and improvement of the rules governing a state’s organizational form. Comprehensive deepening of reform “is a profound transformation of the mode of reform organization,” a transformation that is concretely manifested as a profound change in organizational rules and their combination. In the New Era, institutional building extensively involves the adjustment and development of relations between people and others, people and society, people and nature, and people and themselves. Spatially, it involves the optimization and development of various fields such as internal affairs, foreign affairs, national defense, Party governance, state governance, and the military, as well as the economy, politics, culture, society, and ecology. In terms of content, it involves the optimization and reform of deep-seated institutional mechanisms in various fields. Temporally, it is situated in a period of overlapping development of industrialization, informatization, urbanization, and agricultural modernization. Against this backdrop, institutional building must not only anchor the overall goal of comprehensively deepening reform but also coordinate existing organizational forms with innovative ones, the fundamental system with basic systems, and the improvement and development of important systems and their institutional mechanisms. It must also coordinate general functional systems with those of different functions, and align systemic institutions with mechanistic ones. Furthermore, it must synchronize the transformation of organizational forms across different fields, departments, levels, and processes. Therefore, institutional building is necessarily integrated in nature. “Comprehensively deepening reform involves the overall work of the Party and the state, involves all areas of economic and social development, and involves many major theoretical and practical issues. It is a complex systems engineering project. As reform deepens, the interconnectedness and interactivity of reforms in various fields and links have significantly increased. Each reform will have an important impact on other reforms, and each reform requires the coordination and cooperation of other reforms.” [1]1 Xi Jinping, “Explanatory Notes on the ‘Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening Reform’,” November 9, 2013. “This project is extremely grand. Piecemeal adjustments will not work, nor will fragmented repairs. It must be a comprehensive and systematic reform and improvement, a linkage and integration of reforms and improvements in all fields.” [2]2 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Second Plenary Session of the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China,” February 28, 2014. The difficulty, intensity, breadth, depth, and complexity of comprehensively deepening reform and advancing institutional building in the New Era are rare in the world, and must be advanced systematically, holistically, and synergistically.

制度建设是国家组织方式的规则的整体、系统和协同优化和完善。全面深化改革“是一场改革组织方式的深刻变革”，这种变革现实地体现为组织规则及其组合方式的深刻变革。新时代制度建设广泛涉及人与他人、人与社会、人与自然、人与自身的关系的调整和发展，空间上涉及内政外交国防、治党治国治军以及经济、政治、文化、社会、生态等各个领域的优化和发展，内容上涉及各领域深层次体制机制优化和改革，时间上处于工业化、信息化、城镇化、农业现代化叠加发展期，在这样的背景下，制度建设既必须锚定全面深化改革的总目标，又必须协调既有组织方式与创新组织方式、根本制度与基本制度、重要制度及其体制机制的完善和发展，一般功能制度与不同功能制度的协同、体制性制度与机制性制度的对接，还必须同步不同领域、部门、层级和过程的组织方式的变革，因此，制度建设必然是集成型的，“全面深化改革涉及党和国家工作全局，涉及经济社会发展各领域，涉及许多重大理论问题和实际问题，是一个复杂的系统工程。随着改革不断深入，各个领域各个环节改革的关联性互动性明显增强，每一项改革都会对其他改革产生重要影响，每一项改革又都需要其他改革协同配合。”“这项工程极为宏大，零敲碎打调整不行，碎片化修补也不行，必须是全面的系统的改革和改进，是各领域改革和改进的联动和集成”。新时代全面深化改革和推进制度建设的难度、强度、广度、深度和复杂程度，更是世所罕见，必须系统、整体和协同推进。

Institutional building is a supply-side structural reform of institutions in the process of modern state building. In the sense of comprehensively deepening reform, institutional building is actually a supply-side structural optimization and reform of institutional advantages, weaknesses, shortcomings, and even gaps, adapting to new situations and tasks. It is the adherence, improvement, optimization, adjustment, and arrangement of the principles, rules, and norms of modern state institutions. In accordance with the spirit of the “Decision,” [3]3 The “Decision” refers to the “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-Path Modernization,” adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in July 2024. the main content of institutional building is to continue to improve and develop the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, resolutely eliminate shortcomings in various systems and mechanisms, and advance the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. In summary, institutional building is the continuous supply-side structural optimization and reform of institutions based on the demand for institutional supply in the modernization process. It involves constantly improving the institutional framework, consolidating the fundamental system, perfecting basic systems, innovating important systems, promoting the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics to become more mature and well-defined, and continuously raising the level of modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity.

制度建设是现代国家建设进程中的制度供给侧结构性改革。在全面深化改革意义上，制度建设实际上是适应新的形势和任务，对于制度优势、弱项、短板甚至空白进行的制度供给侧结构性优化和改革，是对于现代国家制度原则、规则和规范的坚持、完善、优化、调整和安排。按照《决定》精神，制度建设主要内容是继续完善和发展中国特色社会主义制度，坚决破除各方面体制机制弊端，推进国家治理现代化。概括地说，制度建设就是根据现代化进程对于制度供给的需求，持续进行制度供给侧结构性优化和改革，不断健全制度框架，筑牢根本制度，完善基本制度，创新重要制度，推动中国特色社会主义制度更加成熟更加定型，国家治理体系和治理能力现代化水平不断提高。

Institutional building contains a reform philosophy and strategy of simultaneously breaking and establishing, with establishment preceding breaking. Since the New Era, General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the need to proceed from reality, establish before breaking, adapt measures to local conditions, and provide classified guidance. Institutional building is a process centered on the overall goal of comprehensively deepening reform, simultaneously breaking and establishing, with establishment preceding breaking. If “institutions” are the key link in comprehensively deepening reform, then “building” is the overall orientation and basic method of its reform and development. Taking “institutional building” as the main line of comprehensively deepening reform is essentially a specific reform philosophy. It inherently contains a macro strategy for achieving organic unity between reform and stability across temporal and spatial spans. It demonstrates the reformer’s choice and arrangement of the sequence of institutional innovation and institutional reform in the process of institutional change. It emphasizes that comprehensively deepening reform must seek progress while maintaining stability, correctly grasp the parallel operation, parallel calculation, parallel dialectics, and parallel development of institutional incremental reform and institutional stock reform. Based on simultaneously breaking and establishing, with establishment preceding breaking, it focuses on institutional reform with a positive and forward-looking mindset and a development-oriented approach to building. In the process of comparing the operational advantages of old and new systems and mechanisms, and under the reasonable and effective guidance of innovative and constructive institutions, it smoothly achieves institutional renewal, institutional transition, and institutional transformation.

制度建设内含着破立并举、先立后破的改革哲学和方略。新时代以来，习近平总书记多次强调，要坚持从实际出发，先立后破、因地制宜、分类指导。制度建设是围绕全面深化改革的总目标，破立并举、先立后破的过程。如果说“制度”是全面深化改革的关键环节，“建设”则是其改革和发展的总体取向和基本方式。全面深化改革以“制度建设”为主线，本质上是一种特定的改革哲学，实际上蕴含着改革与稳定在时空跨度上实现有机统一的宏观战略，显示着改革者在制度变迁中对于制度创新与制度改革先后序列的选择安排，强调全面深化改革必须稳中求进，正确把握制度增量改革与制度存量改革的并行运行、并行计算、并行辩证和并行发展。立足于破立并举、先立后破，以积极向前的正向心态、以发展为要的建设取向着力于制度改革，在新旧不同体制机制比较运行优势过程中，在创新制度、建设制度合理有效牵引下，平稳实现制度更新、制度过渡和制度变革。

Institutional building is an organic combination of top-level design and practical exploration, as well as practicality and constructiveness. Entering the New Era, China’s reform and opening up have achieved tremendous results, but also face new contradictions and problems. Therefore, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “To solve the prominent contradictions and problems we face, relying solely on reforms in a single field or at a single level will hardly be effective. We must strengthen top-level design and overall planning.” [4]4 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the 22nd Collective Study Session of the Political Bureau of the 18th Central Committee,” December 5, 2014. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen top-level design for development goals at various stages and development strategies in various fields. For institutional reform and institutional building, “the so-called top-level design is to make overall designs for the economic system, political system, cultural system, social system, and ecological system, strengthen the study and judgment of the interconnectedness of various reforms, and strive to achieve the matching of the overall and the partial, the combination of addressing both symptoms and root causes, and the promotion of gradual progress and breakthroughs.” [5]5 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Symposium on Further Promoting the Development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt,” January 5, 2018.

制度建设是顶层设计与经验探索、实践性与建构性的有机结合。进入新时代，我国的改革开放取得巨大成就，同时也面临新的矛盾和问题，因此，习近平总书记指出，“要解决我们面临的突出矛盾和问题，仅仅依靠单个领域、单个层次的改革难以奏效，必须加强顶层设计、整体谋划”。因此，必须加强各个阶段发展目标、各个领域发展战略的顶层设计。对于制度改革和制度建设来说，“所谓顶层设计，就是要对经济体制、政治体制、文化体制、社会体制、生态体制作出统筹设计，加强对各项改革关联性的研判，努力做到全局和局部相配套、治本和治标相结合、渐进和突破相促进”。

At the same time, advancing comprehensive deepening of reform through institutional building and realizing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity is an unprecedented undertaking. This requires blazing a trail through practice and supporting design through practice, “boldly exploring in practice, and promoting the development of the cause through reform and innovation.” As General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “Crossing the river by feeling the stones and strengthening top-level design are dialectically unified. Advancing partial and phased reform and opening up must be carried out under the premise of strengthening top-level design, and strengthening top-level design must be planned on the basis of advancing partial and phased reform and opening up.” [6]6 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Second Plenary Session of the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China,” February 28, 2014. In the new historical juncture, taking institutional building as the main line to guide further comprehensive deepening of reform requires achieving an organic combination of top-level design with problem orientation and exploratory innovation at a new starting point and level.

与此同时，以制度建设推进全面深化改革，实现国家治理现代化，是前无古人的事业，这又需要以实践开拓道路、支撑设计，“在实践中去大胆探索，通过改革创新来推动事业发展”，如同习近平总书记指出的那样，“摸着石头过河和加强顶层设计是辩证统一的，推进局部的阶段性改革开放要在加强顶层设计的前提下进行，加强顶层设计要在推进局部的阶段性改革开放的基础上来谋划。”在新的历史方位上，以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革，就需要在新的起点和层次上实现顶层设计与问题导向和探索创新的有机结合。

Institutional building is also an organic combination of practicality and constructiveness. The people are the main body of history and possess immense institutional creativity and initiative. In the practice of comprehensively deepening reform, the deepest foundation of institutional building lies in the practice of the people. At the same time, institutional building is also a process of institutional construction. The Party leads the people in effectively governing the country. With historical initiative and reform consciousness, it gathers the wisdom of the people, summarizes, refines, and elevates it into universally binding institutions, and then tests it through the practice of the people. This is a manifestation of the mass line of the Chinese Communists in the New Era and a basic path for the Party to govern the world with institutional rules and deepen reform through institutional building. Accordingly, General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed to “unify strengthening top-level design with adhering to seeking advice from the people.” [7]7 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Symposium on Experts and Scholars,” August 24, 2020. This requires “following the Party’s mass line well in the New Era, fully absorbing social expectations, the wisdom of the masses, expert opinions, and grassroots experience into the reform design.” [8]8 Xi Jinping, “Explanatory Notes on the ‘Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-Path Modernization’,” July 15, 2024. The practicality and constructiveness of institutional building vividly embody the historical practice of the Party leading and relying on the people to optimize institutions, reform institutions, build institutions, innovate institutions, advance development, and govern the world.

制度建设也是实践性与建构性的有机结合。人民群众是历史的主体，具有巨大的制度创造性和主动性。在全面深化改革的实践中，制度建设最为深厚的基础在于人民群众的实践。与此同时，制度建设又是制度建构的过程，党领导人民有效地治理国家，以历史的主动和改革的自觉，荟萃人民群众的智慧，总结提炼和上升为普遍规范的制度，再经由人民群众的实践加以检验，是中国共产党人群众路线的新时代体现，是党以制度规则治理天下、以制度建设深化改革的基本路径。据此，习近平总书记提出，要“把加强顶层设计和坚持问计于民统一起来”。这就需要“走好新时代党的群众路线，把社会期盼、群众智慧、专家意见、基层经验充分吸收到改革设计中来。”制度建设的实践性与建构性，生动地体现着党领导人民、依靠人民优化制度、改革制度、建设制度、创新制度、推进发展、治理天下的历史实践。

Institutional building is a dynamic, gradual, and long-term development process. Historical materialism holds that the development of social productive forces and the movement of basic social contradictions promote the continuous development of human society and the continuous progress of civilization. Reform and opening up are always on the road. Therefore, institutional building is also a dynamic, gradual, and long-term development process, continuously optimizing and innovating in the process of the contradictory movement and continuous adaptation between productive forces and relations of production, and between the superstructure and the economic base.

制度建设是动态的、渐进的和长期的发展过程。历史唯物主义认为，社会生产力的发展和社会基本矛盾运动，促进人类社会不断发展，文明不断进步，改革开放永远在路上，因此，制度建设也是动态的、渐进的和长期的发展过程，在生产力与生产关系、上层建筑与经济基础的矛盾运动和持续适应过程中不断优化和创新。

Institutional building is a social revolution that is wide-ranging, profound, sustained, and far-reaching. In the New Era, comprehensively deepening reform touches upon profound changes in various systems and mechanisms, deep adjustments in social interest relations and patterns, and deep-seated changes in people’s ideas, values, and moral concepts. In this process, comprehensively deepening reform will inevitably continue to receive support from the Party and the broad masses of the people, but will also encounter difficulties and even resistance from many sides. The historical task of institutional building is unprecedentedly arduous and heavy. Therefore, taking institutional building as the main line to guide further comprehensive deepening of reform requires fearless perseverance, persistence, and unyielding advancement.

制度建设是牵动广泛、涉及深刻、持续持久和影响深远的社会革命。在新时代，全面深化改革触及各方面体制机制的深刻变革、社会利益关系和利益格局的深度调整、人们的思想观念、价值观念和道德观念的深层变化，在这一过程中，全面深化改革必然持续得到党和广大人民群众的支持，也会遭遇多方面困难甚至阻力，制度建设的历史任务空前繁重艰巨，因此，以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革需要无畏艰难、持之以恒、坚忍不拔地坚持和推进。

At the same time, institutional development will not be accomplished overnight. Institutional development is not only a gradual process of repeated experimentation and innovation through practice but will inevitably continue to develop as practice develops, constantly being tested by the development of productive forces and social practice. This requires that through comprehensively deepening reform and opening up, we resolutely overcome the drawbacks of systems and mechanisms in the course of reform and development, and continuously improve and innovate institutions in all areas. As General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, we have highlighted the main line of institutional development, improved institutions in all areas through comprehensively deepening reform and opening up, promoted the socialist system with Chinese characteristics to become more mature and more established, and significantly raised the level of modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity, providing a strong institutional guarantee for building a moderately prosperous society in all respects. At the same time, we must be soberly aware that perfecting the socialist system with Chinese characteristics is a dynamic process that will inevitably continue to develop as practice develops. Existing institutions need to be constantly improved, and new fields and new practices require advancing institutional innovation and filling institutional gaps. Facing new situations and tasks, we must further comprehensively deepen reform and opening up, continue to improve institutions and mechanisms in all areas, consolidate foundations, leverage strengths, shore up weaknesses, and strengthen weak links, constantly better transforming China’s institutional advantages into national governance effectiveness.” [9]9 Xi Jinping, “Explanatory Notes on the ‘Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Opening Up to Advance Chinese-Path Modernization’,” July 15, 2024.

与此同时，制度建设不会一蹴而就，制度建设既是通过实践反复尝试和创新的渐进过程，也必然随着实践发展而不断发展，不断接受生产力发展和社会实践检验。这就需要通过全面深化改革，在改革发展中坚决克服体制机制的弊端，不断完善和创新各方面制度，如同习近平总书记指出的那样，“党的十八大以来，我们突出制度建设这条主线，通过全面深化改革完善各方面制度，推动中国特色社会主义制度更加成熟更加定型，国家治理体系和治理能力现代化水平明显提高，为全面建成小康社会提供了有力制度保障。同时，要清醒看到，完善中国特色社会主义制度是一个动态过程，必然随着实践发展而不断发展，已有制度需要不断健全，新领域新实践需要推进制度创新、填补制度空白。面对新的形势和任务，必须进一步全面深化改革，继续完善各方面制度机制，固根基、扬优势、补短板、强弱项，不断把我国制度优势更好转化为国家治理效能。”

II. The Leading Function of Institutional Development for Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Opening Up

二、制度建设对于全面深化改革的挈领功能

Reform and opening up is an important magic weapon for the cause of the Party and the people to catch up with the times in big strides, a major strategy related to the future and destiny of Chinese-path modernization, and institutional development is an important gateway for comprehensively deepening reform and opening up.

改革开放是党和人民事业大踏步赶上时代的重要法宝，是关系中国式现代化前途和命运的重大战略，而制度建设则是全面深化改革的重要法门。

Research on institutions in contemporary social science has found that state institutions have multiple functions. For example, economists believe that institutions give economic activities certainty and predictability, making economic activities and their effects predictable in an institutional sense, thereby stimulating the enthusiasm for economic activities and reducing transaction costs. Political scientists believe that institutions are an important component of a country’s soft power and have a significant impact on governance and international relations. Sociologists believe that the most direct function of institutions is to construct social order, resolve social contradictions and conflicts, promote social cooperation, and maintain social harmony and stability. Cultural scholars believe that institutions have the function of transmitting and creating culture. Institutions preserve and transmit human culture and civilization, enabling them to be inherited and disseminated, and inspiring people to create new civilizations, and so on.

当代社会科学对于制度的研究发现，国家制度具有多方面功能，比如，经济学者认为，制度使得经济活动具有确定性和可把握性，使得经济活动及其效应在制度意义上可以预期，从而激发经济活动的积极性，降低交易成本；政治学者认为，制度是国家软实力的重要内容，对于治国理政和国际关系具有重要影响；社会学者认为，制度最直接的功能是建构社会秩序，解决社会矛盾和冲突，推进社会合作，维持社会和谐与稳定；文化学者认为，制度具有传递与创造文化的功能。制度保存与传递人类文化和文明，使之得以传承和传播，并且激励人们创造新文明，如此等等。

A profound review and summary of China’s reform and opening up, especially the process of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up in the New Era, shows that institutional development has the following multiple major strategic leading functions for comprehensively deepening reform and opening up.

深刻回顾总结我国改革开放，尤其是新时代全面深化改革的过程，可见制度建设对于全面深化改革具有以下多方面重大战略挈领功能。

Institutional development is an important path for realizing the Two Integrations in comprehensively deepening reform and opening up. Historical materialism holds that in the social structure, ideology and state institutions both belong to the superstructure, influencing the development of productive forces through interaction with the economic base. Within this, state institutions connect state ideology, cultural values, and the economic base with the development of productive forces, possessing important functions of penetration, connection, and transformation.

制度建设是在全面深化改革中实现“两个结合”的重要路径。唯物史观认为，在社会结构中，意识形态与国家制度同属上层建筑，通过与经济基础的相互作用而影响生产力的发展。在这其中，国家制度连接着国家意识形态、文化价值与经济基础、生产力的发展，具有重要的贯通性、连接性和转化性功能。

In the New Era, institutional development is not only an effective path for the organic combination of contemporary Chinese Marxism with the great practice of Chinese-path modernization, but also an important way for its combination with fine traditional Chinese culture. Through institutional development, contemporary Chinese Marxism can be combined with the modernization practice of hundreds of millions of people in the form of norms and rules, promoting the development of modernization and stimulating social vitality, and it will itself continuously develop in this practice. It can be combined with fine traditional Chinese culture in the form of norms and rules, so that the inherent compatibility between contemporary Chinese Marxism and fine traditional Chinese culture is normatively reflected through institutional development, and fine traditional Chinese culture is creatively transformed and innovatively developed by virtue of institutional optimization and innovation, “making Marxism Chinese and fine traditional Chinese culture modern, and making the new culture formed through the ‘combination’ the cultural form of Chinese-path modernization.”

在新时代，制度建设既是当代中国马克思主义与中国式现代化伟大实践有机结合的有效路径，也是其与中华优秀传统文化结合的重要方式。通过制度建设，当代中国马克思主义可以以规范和规则的形态与亿万人民的现代化建设实践相结合，促进现代化的发展，激发社会活力，其自身也会在这一实践中不断发展；可以以规范和规则的形态与中华优秀传统文化相结合，使得当代中国马克思主义与中华传统优秀文化的内在契合性通过制度建设得以规范体现，使得中华优秀传统文化凭藉制度优化和创新得以创造性转化和创新性发展，“让马克思主义成为中国的，中华优秀传统文化成为现代的，让经由‘结合’而形成的新文化成为中国式现代化的文化形态。”

Institutional development is the key pivot for further liberating productive forces and stimulating social endogenous momentum and innovation vitality. Overall, China’s relations of production are compatible with its productive forces, and its superstructure with its economic base. However, the continuous development of social productive forces, especially the development of new quality productive forces, puts forward new requirements for the adjustment and adaptation of relations of production and the superstructure. These requirements all need to be met by continuing to improve and develop the socialist system with Chinese characteristics and advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. And advancing the development and construction of institutions that closely link productive forces with relations of production, and the superstructure with the economic base, is undoubtedly identifying the key pivot for promoting a better adaptation between relations of production and productive forces, between the superstructure and the economic base, and between national governance and social development.

制度建设是进一步解放生产力、激发社会内生动力和创新活力的关键枢机。从总体上看，我国的生产关系与生产力、上层建筑与经济基础是适应的，但是，社会生产力的持续发展，尤其是新质生产力的发展，对于生产关系和上层建筑的调整和适应提出了新的要求，这些要求都需要通过继续完善和发展中国特色社会主义制度，推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化来予以满足。而推进紧密联系生产力与生产关系、上层建筑与经济基础的制度的建设和发展，无疑是找准了推动生产关系和生产力、上层建筑和经济基础、国家治理和社会发展更好相适应的关键枢机。

Institutional development is an authoritative lever for reasonably and legally regulating and optimizing social interest relations and patterns. The persistence, optimization, and change of interest relations and patterns brought about by social development inevitably lead to the persistence, reform, and innovation of institutional development. And systematic, complete, scientifically standardized, and effectively operating institutional development is the political pathway and authoritative lever for confirming, constructing, and shaping reasonable and legal social interest relations and patterns.

制度建设是合理合法调节和优化社会利益关系和格局的权威杠杆。社会发展带来的利益关系和利益格局坚持、优化和变动，必然带来制度建设的坚持、改革和创新。而系统完备、科学规范、运行有效的制度建设，则是确认、构建和塑造合理合法的社会利益关系和利益格局的政治途径和权威杠杆。

The practice of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up in the New Era shows that, on the one hand, the overall interests, long-term interests, and fundamental interests of the people represented by the socialist system with Chinese characteristics are the fundamental starting point of institutional development. On the other hand, the systems and mechanisms for interest production, interest exchange, interest expression, interest aggregation, interest realization, interest distribution, and interest regulation in the people’s republic are not only necessary components of the people’s national governance system, but also important pathways for ensuring the legitimate rights and interests of the people, promoting high-quality development, whole-process people’s democracy, law-based governance in all respects, people’s well-being, socialist culture, ecological civilization, and secure development.

新时代全面深化改革的实践表明，一方面，中国特色社会主义制度所代表的人民整体利益、长远利益和根本利益，是制度建设的根本出发点。另一方面，人民共和国的利益生产、利益交换、利益表达、利益聚合、利益实现、利益分配和利益调节体制机制，既是人民国家治理制度体系的必要构件，也是确保人民正当权益、促进高质量发展、全过程人民民主、全面依法治国、民生福祉、社会主义文化、生态文明和安全发展的重要途径。

Since the beginning of the New Era, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has adhered to a people-centered approach, advanced the comprehensive deepening of reform and opening up, and achieved historic changes, systematic reshaping, and overall reconstruction of systems and mechanisms in many areas, profoundly changing China’s social interest relations and structure, and achieving historic accomplishments. In the new period, to further comprehensively deepen reform and opening up, it is even more necessary to further promote the adjustment and optimization of interest relations and structures through institutional development. “Whatever the people care about and look forward to, reform must grasp and advance, bringing the people more sense of gain through reform.” Let the fruits of modernization benefit all the people more and more fairly.

新时代以来，以习近平同志为核心的党中央坚持以人民为中心，推进全面深化改革，许多领域的体制机制实现历史性变革、系统性重塑、整体性重构，深刻改变了我国社会利益关系和利益结构，取得了历史性成就。新时期进一步全面深化改革，更加需要通过制度建设进一步推进利益关系和利益结构的调整和优化，“老百姓关心什么、期盼什么，改革就要抓住什么、推进什么，通过改革给人民群众带来更多获得感。”让现代化建设成果更多更公平惠及全体人民。

Institutional development is the main track for the construction and development of a modern state. Institutional development is both a basic element of modern state construction and the main track for the development of a modern state.

制度建设是现代国家建设和发展的主要轨道。制度建设既是现代国家建设的基础要件，也是现代化国家发展的主要轨道。

As far as modern state construction is concerned, as mentioned above, the process of taking institutional development as the main line to lead the comprehensive deepening of reform and opening up involves the optimization and innovation of political power relations, citizens’ political rights relations, and the relationship between the two. According to the overall goal of comprehensively deepening reform and opening up, the process of optimizing and innovating these power relations, rights relations, and the relationship between the two is the process of perfecting and developing the socialist system with Chinese characteristics, optimizing and constructing a more mature and established modern national governance system, and correspondingly enhancing national governance capacity. Therefore, the process of institutional development is essentially a process of standardizing and optimizing political power, citizens’ rights, and their mutual relations through modern state institutional construction, and a process of standardizing, legalizing, and making effective the achievements of this construction in the form of institutions.

就现代国家建设而言，如前所述，以制度建设为主线挈领全面深化改革的过程涉及政治权力关系、公民政治权利关系以及两者关系的优化和创新。按照全面深化改革的总目标，这种权力关系、权利关系以及两者关系的优化和创新的过程，就是完善和发展中国特色社会主义制度，优化和建构更加成熟和定型的现代国家治理体系，相应提升国家治理能力的过程。因此，制度建设的过程本质上是以现代国家制度建设规范和优化政治权力、公民权利及其相互关系的过程，是以制度的形式把其中的建设成果予以规范化、法治化和效能化的过程。

As far as modern state development is concerned, as a supply-side structural optimization and reform of institutions, institutional development is actually a process of institutional demand and institutional supply in the course of modern state construction. In the New Era, facing complex new domestic and international situations, new problems in modernization construction, and new demands of the people, comprehensively deepening reform and opening up solves problems and meets demands through the persistence, improvement, innovation, and expansion of institutions. This requires achieving a balance between institutional demand and institutional supply, making institutions match the development of modernization, ensuring the full supply of institutions for the construction and development of a modern state, and breaking the “Huntington dilemma” of developing countries. Institutional development is precisely an important way to achieve this overall matching and overall balance between institutional demand and institutional supply.

就现代国家发展而言，作为制度供给侧结构性优化和改革，制度建设实际上是现代国家建设过程中制度需求与制度供给的过程。在新时代，面对国内外复杂的新情况、现代化建设的新问题和人民群众的新需求，全面深化改革以制度的坚持、完善、创新和拓展解决问题和满足需求，这就需要实现制度需求与制度供给的平衡，使得制度与现代化发展相匹配，以保障现代国家建设和发展的制度充分供给，破解发展中国家的“亨廷顿困境”，而制度建设正是实现这种制度需求与制度供给整体性匹配和总体性平衡的重要途径。

Institutional building is the practical strategy for resolving the “paradox of institutional reform” in the comprehensive deepening of reform. In reform practice, institutions and mechanisms are often both the basis for reform and the object of reform. This so-called “paradox of institutional reform” in a transitioning society can only be resolved through the statutory procedures of comprehensive deepening of reform and institutional building.

制度建设是在全面深化改革中破解“制度改革悖论”的实际方略。在改革实践中，体制机制常常既是改革的依据，又是改革的对象。这种转型社会的所谓“制度改革悖论”，只有通过全面深化改革和制度建设的法定程序，才可以破解。

In the comprehensive deepening of reform, institutional building emphasizes that the authority and legitimacy of the law must be respected, and institutional building must be advanced within the statutory authorization of institutional reform by the state and the statutory recognition of institutional innovation. That is to say, reformers can carry out reform in accordance with existing laws and regulations, and they can also obtain authorization through statutory procedures, granting reasonableness and legitimacy to institutional reform. At the same time, reformers can also obtain recognition through statutory procedures, granting legitimacy to new institutions, thereby consolidating the achievements of institutional reform and building. Therefore, institutional building must firmly rely on the political and legal authority of the Party and the state, resolve the so-called “paradox of institutional reform,” and advance the development of the national governance system and institutional building.

在全面深化改革中，制度建设强调，必须尊重法律的权威性和正当性，在国家对于制度改革的法定授权和对于制度创新的法定认可中推进制度建设。这就是说，改革者既可以依据既有法律法规进行改革，也可以通过法定程序进行法律授权，赋予制度改革以合理合法性。与此同时，改革者也可以依照法定程序进行法律认可，赋予新的制度以合法性，从而巩固制度改革和建设的成果，因此，制度建设必须紧紧依靠党和国家的政治和法律权威，破解所谓“制度改革悖论”，推进国家治理体系和制度建设的发展。

Institutional building is a specific pivot for implementing the core socialist values and coordinating and balancing multiple social values. The core socialist values are the value foundation of socialism with Chinese characteristics, “a powerful force that unites people’s hearts and gathers popular strength,” and also the value underpinning of Chinese-path modernization. The system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, in turn, has the important function of leading and regulating the implementation of the core socialist values. In the practice of comprehensively deepening reform in the New Era, the close connection between institutional building and value system building enables it to better implement the core socialist values through rules and norms, while the implementation of the core socialist values is an important task of institutional building. In this regard, the process of comprehensively deepening reform is, at a deep structural level, actually the process of implementing the core socialist values, and institutional building is the specific pivot that undertakes this function. The organic integration of the two is essentially the organic combination of law-based governance and rule-of-virtue governance.

制度建设是贯彻社会主义核心价值观和协调平衡社会多重价值的特定枢纽。社会主义核心价值观是中国特色社会主义制度的价值根基，“是凝聚人心、汇聚民力的强大力量”，也是中国式现代化的价值底蕴。而中国特色社会主义制度则具有挈领和规范社会主义核心价值观实施的重要功能。在新时代全面深化改革的实践中，制度建设与价值体系建设的紧密关联，使得它可以以规则规范方式更好地贯彻社会主义核心价值观，而社会主义核心价值观的贯彻，则是制度建设的重要任务。就此而言，全面深化改革的过程，在深层结构上实是社会主义核心价值观的贯彻落实过程，而制度建设则是承担这一功能的特定枢纽，两者的有机融合，本质上是依法治国与以德治国的有机结合。

The authority and normativity of institutional building also give it a leading and regulating role in coordinating social values. In the comprehensive deepening of reform, the authority and normativity of institutional building enable it, in accordance with the orientation of balance and coordination, to construct policy rules and institutional systems that complement different value orientations, thereby achieving the balance and coordination of multiple social values through the composite composition and operation of institutions and through multiple institutional logics and mechanisms. For example, Chinese-path modernization is a modernization in which material civilization and cultural-ethical progress are coordinated. The mutual connection, mutual balance, mutual promotion, and mutual coordination of the values of material civilization and cultural-ethical progress require institutional building and mechanism operation to achieve. For example, the values of economic development and people’s livelihood, the values of social development and national governance, and the balance and coordination of the values of efficiency and fairness, vitality and order, development and security in social life all need to be achieved through perfecting and improving the national governance system.

制度建设的权威性和规范性，也使得它对于社会价值协调具有引领和规范作用。在全面深化改革中，制度建设的权威性和规范性，使它可以按照平衡和协调取向，构建不同价值取向之间互补的政策规则和制度体系，从而以制度的复合构成和运行，以多重制度逻辑和机制，实现社会多重价值的平衡和协调，比如，中国式现代化是物质文明和精神文明相协调的现代化，物质文明价值与精神文明价值的相互联系、相互平衡、相互促进和相互协调，需要制度建设和机制运行来实现；比如，经济发展与社会民生的价值，社会发展与国家治理的价值，社会生活中效率和公平、活力和秩序、发展和安全的价值的平衡和协调，也都需要通过健全和完善国家治理体系来实现。

Institutional building is an endogenous driving force for guiding, regulating, and adjusting people’s behavior and modes of behavior, and for promoting the realization of people’s all-round development. The fundamental goal of modernization is to realize the modernization of people. “The essence of modernization is the modernization of people,” and “the ultimate goal of modernization is to realize people’s free and all-round development.” This is a fundamental requirement running through the history, theory, and practice of China’s modernization, and it is also the essential stipulation of institutional building in the New Era.

制度建设是引导、规范和调整人的行为和行为方式，推动实现人的全面发展的内生动能。现代化的根本目标是实现人的现代化。“现代化的本质是人的现代化”，“现代化的最终目标是实现人自由而全面的发展”。这是贯穿中国现代化的历史、理论和实践的根本要求，也是新时代制度建设的本质规定。

The “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening Reform” adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the CPC in 2013 pointed out that the overall goal of comprehensively deepening reform is to “improve and develop the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and advance the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity.” [10]10 The Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the CPC was a key meeting held in November 2013 that set the agenda for comprehensive deepening of reform. Subsequently, General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly elaborated on the overall goal of comprehensively deepening reform. The “Decision” adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC determines that the overall goal of further comprehensively deepening reform is to “continue to improve and develop the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and advance the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity.”

2013年党的十八届三中全会通过的《中共中央关于全面深化改革若干重大问题的决定》即指出，全面深化改革的总目标是“完善和发展中国特色社会主义制度，推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化。”此后，习近平总书记多次深入阐述过全面深化改革的总目标。党的二十届三中全会通过的《决定》确定，进一步全面深化改革的总目标是，“继续完善和发展中国特色社会主义制度，推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化。”

The overall goal of comprehensively deepening reform closely integrates the modernization of the national governance system with the modernization of governance capacity, organically links institutional building with people’s ability to execute institutions, and endows institutional building in the New Era with entirely new connotations. It transcends traditional institutionalism, which externalizes institutions from people and their behavior, making institutions and institutional building not only a given platform for people’s behavior and development but also an intrinsic variable that adjusts and changes people’s behavior and modes of behavior. This achieves an organic combination of institutionalism and activism, and an organic combination of institutional modernization and people’s modernization, indicating that institutional building is an important endogenous driving force for promoting people’s modernization and all-round development. Through institutional building and development, constructing and implementing good laws and good governance, combining Marxist and core values education, the construction of socialist cultural-ethical progress and moral norms, comprehensively cultivating and shaping modern personality and cultural consciousness, guiding and regulating people’s modes of behavior, forming a modern personality and institutional civilization that respects, follows, complies with, and adheres to institutions, and consolidating the cultural foundation of Chinese-path modernization.

全面深化改革的总目标把国家治理制度体系现代化与治理能力现代化紧密结合，把制度建设与人执行制度的能力有机联系，赋予了新时代制度建设以全新的内涵，超越了将制度外在于人和人的行为的传统制度主义，使得制度和制度建设不仅仅是人的行为和人的发展的既定平台，而且是调整和改变人的行为和行为方式的内在变量，由此实现了制度主义与行动主义的有机结合、制度现代化与人的现代化的有机结合，表明制度建设是促进人的现代化和人的全面发展的重要内生动能。通过制度建设和发展，构建和施行良法善治，结合马克思主义和核心价值观教育、社会主义精神文明和道德规范建设，综合培育和塑造现代人格和文化自觉，引导和规范人们的行为方式，形成尊崇制度、遵循制度、遵行制度和遵照制度的现代人格和制度文明，巩固中国式现代化的文化根基。

Institutional building is a powerful guarantee for responding to major risks and challenges and ensuring the stable and long-term progress of the Party and state’s undertakings. The stability, long-term nature, and fundamental character of institutions give institutional building reliability and guarantee, endowing it with the function of responding to major risks and challenges and ensuring the stable, long-term, and sustained progress of the cause of Chinese-path modernization.

制度建设是应对重大风险挑战、推动党和国家事业行稳致远的强大保障。制度的稳定性、长期性和根本性，使得制度建设具有可靠性和保障性，具有应对重大风险和挑战，确保中国式现代化事业行稳致远、持续前行的功能。

Currently, changes unseen in a century are accelerating both domestically and internationally, local conflicts and turbulence occur frequently, global problems intensify, and China’s development has entered a period where strategic opportunities and risks challenges coexist, and uncertainties and unpredictable factors increase. An important path for preventing and defusing risks and effectively responding to challenges is a complete institutional guarantee. As General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “To effectively respond to these risks and challenges and gain strategic initiative in the increasingly fierce international competition, we need to further comprehensively deepen reform, use complete institutions to prevent and defuse risks and effectively respond to challenges, cultivate new opportunities amidst crises, and open up new prospects amidst changes.”

当前，国内国际百年未有之大变局加速发展，局部冲突和动荡频发，全球性问题加剧，我国发展进入战略机遇和风险挑战并存、不确定难预料因素增多的时期。防范化解风险、有效应对挑战重要路径，就是完善的制度保障，如同习近平总书记指出的那样，“有效应对这些风险挑战，在日趋激烈的国际竞争中赢得战略主动，需要我们进一步全面深化改革，用完善的制度防范化解风险、有效应对挑战，在危机中育新机、于变局中开新局。”

III. Implementation Paths for Leading Further Comprehensive Deepening of Reform with Institutional Building

三、以制度建设挈领进一步全面深化改革的实施路径

On the new journey of the New Era, to take institutional building as the main thread to lead further comprehensive deepening of reform, we must adhere to the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, thoroughly implement the “Six Principles” for further comprehensively deepening reform proposed in the “Decision,” and earnestly implement the grand blueprint and action plan of the Party and state to lead further comprehensive deepening of reform and advance Chinese-path modernization with institutional building as the main thread. In practice, the paths are as follows:

新时代新征程以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革，必须坚持以习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想为指导，深入贯彻《决定》提出的进一步全面深化改革的“六项原则”，切实落实党和国家以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革、推进中国式现代化的宏伟蓝图和行动纲领。在实践中，其路径如下：

Strengthen the Party’s overall leadership and improve the Party’s leadership level over institutional building. The “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening Reform” emphatically points out that “comprehensively deepening reform must strengthen and improve the Party’s leadership, fully exert the Party’s core leadership role in overseeing the overall situation and coordinating all parties,” and “resolutely uphold the authority of the Central Committee, ensure the smooth implementation of orders, and unswervingly realize the reform decisions and deployments of the Central Committee.” The Party’s overall leadership and the centralized and unified leadership of the Party Central Committee are the fundamental guarantees for further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization. In the New Era, facing a more complex environment and tasks, the people’s higher and newer expectations for a better life, and the modernization cause’s demand for more scientific, reasonable, fully balanced institutions, it is even more necessary to strengthen the Party’s overall leadership and the centralized and unified leadership of the Party Central Committee, deeply comprehend the decisive significance of the Two Establishments, [11]11 The Two Establishments refers to establishing Xi Jinping’s core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole, and establishing the guiding position of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. enhance the Four Consciousnesses, [12]12 The Four Consciousnesses refers to consciousness of the need to maintain political integrity, think in big-picture terms, follow the leadership core, and keep in alignment with the central Party leadership. strengthen the Four Confidences, [13]13 The Four Confidences refers to confidence in the path, theory, system, and culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics. and achieve the Two Upholds, [14]14 The Two Upholds refers to upholding Xi Jinping’s core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole, and upholding the authority and centralized, unified leadership of the Party Central Committee. maintain a high degree of consciousness in leading social revolution through the Party’s self-revolution, persist in governing the Party with reform spirit and strict standards, and improve the institutional system for the Party’s self-revolution. At the same time, exert the Party’s core leadership role in overseeing the overall situation and coordinating all parties, run Party leadership through all aspects, fields, and the entire process of reform, ensure that institutional building always advances along the correct political direction, and implement it according to scientific, standardized, and reasonable planning.

加强党的全面领导，提高党对制度建设的领导水平。《中共中央关于全面深化改革若干重大问题的决定》强调指出，“全面深化改革必须加强和改善党的领导，充分发挥党总揽全局、协调各方的领导核心作用”“坚决维护中央权威，保证政令畅通，坚定不移实现中央改革决策部署”。党的全面领导和党中央的集中统一领导是进一步全面深化改革、推进中国式现代化的根本保证。新时代，面对更加复杂的环境和任务，人民群众对于美好生活的更高新期待，现代化事业对于制度更加科学合理、充分平衡的需求，更加需要加强党的全面领导和党中央的集中统一领导，深刻领悟“两个确立”的决定性意义，增强“四个意识”、坚定“四个自信”、做到“两个维护”，保持以党的自我革命引领社会革命的高度自觉，坚持用改革精神和严的标准管党治党，完善党的自我革命制度规范体系。同时，发挥党总揽全局、协调各方的领导核心作用，把党的领导贯穿改革各方面、各领域和全过程，确保制度建设始终沿着正确的政治方向前行，按照科学规范合理的规划执行。

At the same time, in further comprehensively deepening reform, it is necessary to enhance the Party’s leadership level and long-term governance capacity, innovate and improve leadership and governance methods, deepen reform of the Party-building system, deeply advance the construction of a clean government and the fight against corruption, improve mechanisms for making political oversight concrete, precise, and routine, and seek truth from facts, daring to act and achieve results in implementing and enforcing institutions. It is necessary to strengthen the Party’s leadership, execution, and coordination capacity for institutional development and reform practice, transform the Party’s many advantages in thought, politics, organization, and discipline into national governance effectiveness, and better use “comprehensive and strict governance of the Party” to lead the modernization of national governance.

同时，在进一步全面深化改革中，要提高党的领导水平和长期执政能力，创新和改进领导方式和执政方式，深化党的建设制度改革，深入推进党风廉政建设和反腐败斗争，健全政治监督具体化、精准化、常态化机制，求真务实、敢作善为抓好制度落实和制度执行。要强化党对于制度建设和改革实践的领导力、执行力和协同力，把党的思想、政治、组织、纪律诸多优势转化为国家治理效能，更好地以“全面从严治党”引领国家治理现代化。

People-centered, building institutions for the people, reforming institutions to serve the people, and innovating institutions by relying on the people. Taking institutional development as the main thread to lead further comprehensive deepening of reform must adhere to a people-centered approach, planning and advancing reform from the perspective of the people’s overall interests, fundamental interests, and long-term interests, designing, constructing, and reforming institutions, and optimizing and innovating systems and mechanisms. General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: “Reform is meaningful only when it is for the people; reform has momentum only when it relies on the people.” This requires that in the process of institutional development, “the people be taken as the value standard, not individuals or specific interest groups; the common prosperity and comprehensive development of all the people be taken as the value yardstick, not the realization of the freedom and rights of individuals or specific social groups; the people’s sense of gain, happiness, and security be taken as the evaluation criterion, not the gains and losses of individuals or specific interest groups.”

以人民为中心，为了人民建设制度，服务人民改革制度，依靠人民创新制度。以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革，必须坚持以人民为中心，从人民整体利益、根本利益、长远利益出发谋划和推进改革，谋划、设计、构建和改革制度，优化和创新体制机制。习近平总书记深刻指出：“为了人民而改革，改革才有意义；依靠人民而改革，改革才有动力。”这就要求在制度建设过程中，“以人民为价值本位，而不是以个人或者特定利益集团为价值本位；以全体人民的共同富裕和全面发展为价值标尺，而不是以个人或者特定社会群体的自由权利实现为价值准则；以全体人民的获得感、幸福感和安全感为评估标准，而不是以个人或者特定利益集团的利益得失为评估标准。”

Taking institutional development as the main thread to lead further comprehensive deepening of reform must ensure that reform is for the people, reform relies on the people, and the fruits of reform are shared by the people, so that institutional development takes root and truly becomes an institution that meets the people’s needs and solves their urgent, difficult, and anxious problems. This requires “fully demonstrating the value of reform plans so that the people have a greater sense of gain.” At the same time, it is necessary to “respect the people’s principal position and pioneering spirit, promptly summarize fresh experiences created by the masses, and fully mobilize the masses’ initiative, creativity, and enthusiasm for advancing reform,” gathering the wisdom and strength of all the people to build effective and useful institutions for the Party leading the people in governing the country and advancing Chinese-path modernization.

以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革，必须做到改革为了人民、改革依靠人民、改革成果由人民共享，使得制度建设落地生根、真正成为满足人民需求，解决人民群众急难愁盼问题的制度。这就需要“把改革方案的含金量充分展示出来，让人民群众有更多获得感”。与此同时，必须“尊重人民主体地位和首创精神，及时总结群众创造的新鲜经验，充分调动群众推进改革的积极性、主动性、创造性”，汇集全体人民的智慧和力量，建设党领导人民治国理政、推进中国式现代化有效管用的制度。

Institutional development unfolds around the overall goal of further comprehensively deepening reform and the Party’s central task. The “Decision” [15]15 The “Decision” refers to the “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform to Advance Chinese-Path Modernization,” adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee in July 2024. establishes the overall goal of further comprehensively deepening reform, requiring that institutional development must “continue to improve and develop the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and advance the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. By 2035, comprehensively establish a high-level socialist market economy system, further improve the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, basically realize the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity, basically achieve socialist modernization, and lay a solid foundation for fully building a modern socialist country by the middle of this century.” Within this, it is especially necessary to closely follow the “seven focal points” [16]16 The “seven focal points” are the seven key areas for reform outlined in the Decision: building a high-level socialist market economy system, developing whole-process people’s democracy, building a culturally advanced country, improving people’s wellbeing, building a Beautiful China, building a higher-level Peaceful China, and improving the Party’s leadership level. and over 300 institutional development and reform measures proposed in the “Decision,” “providing a complete set of more complete, more stable, and more effective institutional systems for the development of the Party and the state, for the happiness and well-being of the people, for social harmony and stability, and for the long-term peace and order of the country.”

制度建设围绕进一步全面深化改革总目标和党的中心任务展开。《决定》确定了进一步全面深化改革的总目标，要求制度建设必须“继续完善和发展中国特色社会主义制度，推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化。到二〇三五年，全面建成高水平社会主义市场经济体制，中国特色社会主义制度更加完善，基本实现国家治理体系和治理能力现代化，基本实现社会主义现代化，为到本世纪中叶全面建成社会主义现代化强国奠定坚实基础。”在这其中，尤其需要紧扣《决定》提出的“七个聚焦”、300多项制度建设和改革举措，“为党和国家事业发展、为人民幸福安康、为社会和谐稳定、为国家长治久安提供一整套更完备、更稳定、更管用的制度体系。”

At the same time, “planning and deploying reform around the Party’s central task is a successful experience of the Party leading reform and opening up.” The 20th National Congress of the CPC established that the Party’s central task for the New Era and new journey is to advance Chinese-path modernization, making advancing Chinese-path modernization the biggest political task of the New Era. Therefore, it is necessary to “closely focus on advancing Chinese-path modernization and implementing the strategic deployments of the 20th National Congress of the CPC to plan further comprehensive deepening of reform, adhering to a problem-oriented approach.” It is necessary to “turn the blueprint of Chinese-path modernization into reality, the fundamental means being further comprehensively deepening reform and continuously improving various systems and mechanisms,” removing various obstacles and continuously injecting vitality and adding momentum into Chinese-path modernization. Therefore, institutional development on the new journey must closely follow the central task of advancing Chinese-path modernization and its strategic deployments. The “Decision” states on this point: “The current and future period is a critical period for comprehensively advancing the building of a strong country and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization. Chinese-path modernization has been continuously advanced through reform and opening up, and will surely open up broad prospects through reform and opening up.”

与此同时，“围绕党的中心任务谋划和部署改革，是党领导改革开放的成功经验。”党的二十大确立了新时代新征程党的中心任务是推进中国式现代化，推进中国式现代化由此成为新时代最大的政治。因此，必须“紧紧围绕推进中国式现代化、落实党的二十大战略部署来谋划进一步全面深化改革，坚持问题导向。”要“把中国式现代化蓝图变为现实，根本在于进一步全面深化改革，不断完善各方面体制机制”，扫除各种障碍，源源不断为中国式现代化激发活力、增添动力。因此，新征程上的制度建设必须紧扣推进中国式现代化这一中心任务及其战略部署，《决定》就此指出，“当前和今后一个时期是以中国式现代化全面推进强国建设、民族复兴伟业的关键时期。中国式现代化是在改革开放中不断推进的，也必将在改革开放中开辟广阔前景。”

In practice, institutional development closely following the central task of Chinese-path modernization must also dialectically grasp the basic attributes of Chinese-path modernization. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Chinese-path modernization has both the common characteristics of modernization in all countries and distinctive features based on its own national conditions.” The general attributes of modernization in Chinese-path modernization require that further comprehensive deepening of reform must achieve an organic combination of the laws of Communist Party governance, the laws of socialist construction, and the laws of human social development, advancing according to the overall requirements and direction of modernization, and institutional development must reflect the fundamental direction and requirements of human social development and progress. On the other hand, “Chinese-path modernization is socialist modernization led by the Communist Party of China.” Therefore, institutional development must adhere to the leadership of the Communist Party of China and the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and must advance development starting from the reality that China is still and will remain in the primary stage of socialism for a long time.

在实践中，制度建设紧扣中国式现代化中心任务，还必须辩证把握中国式现代化的基本属性。习近平总书记指出：“中国式现代化既有各国现代化的共同特征，更有基于自己国情的鲜明特色。”中国式现代化的现代化一般属性，要求进一步全面深化改革必须实现共产党执政规律、社会主义建设规律和人类社会发展规律的有机结合，按照现代化的总体要求和方向推进，制度建设必须体现人类社会发展和进步的根本方向和规律要求。另一方面，“中国式现代化，是中国共产党领导的社会主义现代化。”因此，制度建设必须坚持中国共产党的领导和中国特色社会主义制度，必须从中国仍然并且长期处于社会主义初级阶段的实际出发推进发展。

Thus it can be seen that taking institutional development as the main thread to lead further comprehensive deepening of reform, using further comprehensive deepening of reform to advance Chinese-path modernization, using Chinese-path modernization to advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and realizing the comprehensive development of people is the roadmap for Chinese-path modernization drawn by Chinese Communists on the New Era and new journey, and is the logic of advancement and practical strategy for the Party to unite and lead the people in realizing its original aspiration and founding mission and ideals and beliefs.

由此可见，以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革，以进一步全面深化改革推进中国式现代化，以中国式现代化推进中华民族伟大复兴，实现人的全面发展，是中国共产党人在新时代新征程勾画的中国式现代化的路线图，是党团结带领人民实现初心使命和理想信念的推进逻辑和实践战略。

Institutional development takes economic system reform as the driving force. The “Decision” “plans further comprehensive deepening of reform within the framework of coordinating the ‘Five-Sphere Integrated Plan’ and promoting the ‘Four-Pronged Comprehensive Strategy,’ and coordinates the deployment of economic system reform and reforms in other fields.” Within this overall plan and strategic layout, institutional development is a comprehensive project involving multiple fields, including domestic and international affairs, internal and external affairs, and must fully leverage the driving role of economic system reform. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “Deepening economic system reform remains the focus of further comprehensive deepening of reform, with the main task being to improve the systems and mechanisms conducive to high-quality development, shape new drivers and advantages for development, adhere to and implement the ‘two unswervinglys’ [17]17 The “two unswervinglys” refer to unswervingly consolidating and developing the public sector of the economy, and unswervingly encouraging, supporting, and guiding the development of the non-public sector of the economy., build a unified national market, and improve the basic systems of the market economy.” Institutional development takes economic system reform as the driving force, “centering on the core issue of handling the relationship between the government and the market, placing the construction of a high-level socialist market economy system in a prominent position, and making deployments on key areas and critical links of economic system reform,” thereby driving and improving the improvement and development of systems and mechanisms in various fields: improving the high-standard socialist market economy system, leveraging the advantages of the high-level socialist market economy system, promoting the development of whole-process people’s democracy, adhering to the organic unity of Party leadership, the people being the masters of the country, and law-based governance, making the system of the people being the masters of the country more complete, consultative democracy widely developed at multiple levels and institutionalized, and the socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics more complete; improving the systems and mechanisms for the development of cultural undertakings and cultural industries; improving the social security system, optimizing the systems and mechanisms for the balance and accessibility of basic public services; improving the ecological environment governance system; improving the national security system; deepening reform of the Party-building system, and improving the system for comprehensive and strict governance of the Party.

制度建设以经济体制改革为牵引。《决定》在“统筹推进‘五位一体’总体布局、协调推进‘四个全面’战略布局框架下谋划进一步全面深化改革，统筹部署经济体制改革和其他各领域改革。”在这个总体布局和战略布局下，制度建设是涉及国内国际、内政外交多个领域的综合性工程，必须充分发挥经济体制改革的牵引作用。习近平总书记指出，“深化经济体制改革仍是进一步全面深化改革的重点，主要任务是完善有利于推动高质量发展的体制机制，塑造发展新动能新优势，坚持和落实‘两个毫不动摇’，构建全国统一大市场，完善市场经济基础制度。”制度建设以经济体制改革为牵引，“围绕处理好政府和市场关系这个核心问题，把构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制摆在突出位置，对经济体制改革重点领域和关键环节作出部署”，由此带动和完善各领域体制机制的完善和发展：完善高标准社会主义市场经济体制，发挥高水平社会主义市场经济体制优势，促进全过程人民民主的发展，坚持党的领导、人民当家作主、依法治国有机统一，推动人民当家作主制度更加健全、协商民主广泛多层制度化发展、中国特色社会主义法治体系更加完善；健全文化事业、文化产业发展体制机制；健全社会保障体系，优化基本公共服务均衡性和可及性体制机制；健全生态环境治理体系；健全国家安全体系；深化党的建设制度改革，健全全面从严治党体系。

Institutional development advances with the thinking and methods of the rule of law. Further comprehensive deepening of reform and comprehensively advancing law-based governance are dialectical relationships that are consistent in essence and mutually reinforcing. Further comprehensive deepening of reform is an important pathway for building a socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics, while comprehensively advancing law-based governance can ensure that reform advances in an orderly manner along the track of the rule of law, providing strong legal guarantees for advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. Therefore, “advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity must adhere to law-based governance, providing fundamental, overall, and long-term institutional guarantees for the development of the Party and the state.”

制度建设以法治思维和法治方式推进。进一步全面深化改革与全面推进依法治国是本质一致、相辅相成的辩证关系。进一步全面深化改革是建设中国特色社会主义法治体系的重要途径，而全面依法治国，可以确保改革沿着法治轨道有序推进，为推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化提供有力的法治保障，因此，“推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化，必须坚持依法治国，为党和国家事业发展提供根本性、全局性、长期性的制度保障”。

On the new journey, to further comprehensively deepen reform, we must consciously apply the rule-of-law mindset and methods. “Throughout the entire reform process, we must attach great importance to applying the rule-of-law mindset and methods, and give full play to the guiding and driving role of the rule of law.” This requires that major reforms have legal basis; that we persist in law-based administration and commit to advancing the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity; that we uphold impartial justice so that adjustments to various interest relations in reform receive due legal protection; and that we enhance the rule-of-law consciousness of the entire people, enabling reform to advance in a favorable rule-of-law atmosphere.

新征程上，进一步全面深化改革，必须自觉运用法治思维和方式，“在整个改革过程中，都要高度重视运用法治思维和法治方式，发挥法治的引领和推动作用”，这就必须坚持重大改革于法有据；坚持依法行政，致力于推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化；坚持公正司法，让改革中各种利益关系的调整获得应有的法律保障；增强全民法治观念，使改革在良好的法治氛围中推进。

The process of further comprehensively deepening reform is also a process of advancing law-based governance in all respects, and the process of institutional development is precisely one of achieving legal construction through institutional optimization, improvement, reform, and innovation, thereby advancing law-based governance in all respects. “Deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization on the track of the rule of law ultimately comes down to achieving unity between reform and the rule of law, ensuring that major reforms have legal basis and that reform achievements are promptly elevated into legal systems.” Therefore, the process of further comprehensively deepening reform is in fact also a process of accelerating and optimizing the improvement of the rule-of-law institutional system. Through reform and institutional development, we “fully implement the Constitution, uphold the authority of the Constitution, coordinate reforms in legislation, law enforcement, judiciary, and law-abiding, improve the guarantee mechanism for equality before the law, promote the socialist rule-of-law spirit, safeguard social fairness and justice, and comprehensively advance the law-based governance of all aspects of national work.”

进一步全面深化改革的过程，也是推进全面依法治国的过程，而制度建设的过程，就是以制度优化、完善、改革和创新实现法制建设，推进全面依法治国。“在法治轨道上深化改革、推进中国式现代化，最终落点是做到改革和法治相统一，重大改革于法有据、及时把改革成果上升为法律制度。”因此，进一步全面深化改革的过程，实际上也是加快和优化健全法治制度体系的过程，通过改革和制度建设，“全面贯彻实施宪法，维护宪法权威，协同推进立法、执法、司法、守法各环节改革，健全法律面前人人平等保障机制，弘扬社会主义法治精神，维护社会公平正义，全面推进国家各方面工作法治化。”

Institutional development must adhere to upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground, uphold the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and achieve ideological innovation, policy innovation, institutional innovation, and technological innovation in practice, thereby promoting innovation in productive forces and social development. Upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground is the basic methodology of dialectical materialism. In the practice of modernization, we must adhere to the unity of upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground. “We must uphold fundamental principles and break new ground. No matter how reform is carried out, fundamental things such as upholding the Party’s overall leadership, upholding Marxism, upholding the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and upholding the people’s democratic dictatorship must never be shaken. At the same time, we must dare to innovate, reforming what should and can be reformed well and to the proper extent, and once we are sure, we must unswervingly pursue it.” In short, “We must treat science with a scientific attitude and pursue truth with the spirit of truth, unwaveringly uphold the basic principles of Marxism, unwaveringly uphold the Party’s overall leadership, unwaveringly uphold socialism with Chinese characteristics, keep pace with the times, conform to the development of practice, treat all new things with full enthusiasm, constantly expand the breadth and depth of understanding, dare to say new things that predecessors have not said, dare to do things that predecessors have not done, and guide new practice with new theory.”

制度建设必须坚持守正创新，坚持中国特色社会主义制度，在实践中实现思想创新、政策创新、制度创新、科技创新，促进生产力创新和社会发展创新。守正创新是唯物辩证法的基本方法论。在现代化建设实践中，要坚持守正和创新相统一。“要坚持守正创新，改革无论怎么改，坚持党的全面领导、坚持马克思主义、坚持中国特色社会主义道路、坚持人民民主专政等根本的东西绝对不能动摇，同时要敢于创新，把该改的、能改的改好、改到位，看准了就坚定不移抓。”总之，“我们要以科学的态度对待科学、以真理的精神追求真理，坚持马克思主义基本原理不动摇，坚持党的全面领导不动摇，坚持中国特色社会主义不动摇，紧跟时代步伐，顺应实践发展，以满腔热忱对待一切新生事物，不断拓展认识的广度和深度，敢于说前人没有说过的新话，敢于干前人没有干过的事情，以新的理论指导新的实践。”

The “Decision” [18]18 The “Decision” refers to the “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform to Advance Chinese-Path Modernization,” adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee in July 2024. affirms that upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground is an important principle for further comprehensively deepening reform in the New Era: “Adhere to upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground, unwaveringly uphold socialism with Chinese characteristics, keep pace with the times, conform to the development of practice, highlight problem orientation, and promote theoretical innovation, practical innovation, institutional innovation, cultural innovation, and other innovations from a new starting point.”

《决定》确认守正创新是新时代进一步全面深化改革的重要原则，“坚持守正创新，坚持中国特色社会主义不动摇，紧跟时代步伐，顺应实践发展，突出问题导向，在新的起点上推进理论创新、实践创新、制度创新、文化创新以及其他各方面创新”。

Taking institutional development as the main line to lead the further comprehensive deepening of reform requires thoroughly implementing the principle of upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground. It requires adhering to the correct political direction of further comprehensively deepening reform and institutional development, while at the same time further emancipating the mind, liberating and developing social productive forces, and stimulating and enhancing social vitality. The “Decision” profoundly summarizes the experience and achievements of comprehensively deepening reform since the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee [19]19 The Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the CPC, held in November 2013, adopted the “Decision on Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening Reform.” and the Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee [20]20 The Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the CPC, held in October 2019, adopted the “Decision on Upholding and Improving the System of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics and Advancing the Modernization of the National Governance System and Governance Capacity.”, and plans important measures for further comprehensively deepening reform based on changes in the situation and tasks, centrally embodying the principle and spirit of upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground in institutional development.

以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革，必须深入贯彻守正创新原则，必须坚持进一步全面深化改革和制度建设的正确的政治方向，同时，必须进一步解放思想、解放和发展社会生产力、激发和增强社会活力。《决定》深刻总结十八届三中全会、十九届四中全会以来全面深化改革的经验和成就，根据形势和任务的变化规划进一步全面深化改革的重要举措，集中体现了制度建设守正创新的原则和精神。

Institutional development must implement the dialectics of combining breaking and establishing, and establishing before breaking. As mentioned above, institutional development contains the reform philosophy and strategy of combining breaking and establishing, and establishing before breaking.

制度建设必须贯彻破立结合、先立后破的辩证法。如前所述，制度建设蕴含着破立结合、先立后破的改革哲学和方略。

Since the New Era, General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that comprehensively deepening reform must be based on the dialectics of combining breaking and establishing, and establishing before breaking: “Reform involves both breaking and establishing. If the method is correct, it yields twice the result with half the effort; if not, it yields half the result with twice the effort, or even produces negative effects.” These statements profoundly reflect the laws of comprehensively deepening reform in the New Era.

新时代以来，习近平总书记多次强调全面深化改革，必须立足于破立结合、先立后破的辩证法，“改革有破有立，得其法则事半功倍，不得法则事倍功半甚至产生负作用。”这些论述深刻反映了新时代全面深化改革的规律。

At the same time, in the process of further comprehensively deepening reform, we must deeply grasp the dialectics of combining breaking and establishing, and establishing before breaking, inherent in institutional development. First, taking institutional development as the main line to lead the further comprehensive deepening of reform requires anchoring the overall goal of further comprehensively deepening reform. Second, we must deeply grasp the connotations of breaking and establishing in institutional development. The “establishing” in further comprehensively deepening reform mainly refers to replacing the shortcomings of existing systems and mechanisms through reform. In essence, it is the strengthening and optimization of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, enabling the advantages of this system to be more fully realized. In this regard, the “breaking” of the shortcomings of existing systems and mechanisms in institutional development and deepening reform is essentially “establishing.” Third, in comprehensively deepening reform, the optimization of institutional stock and the innovation of institutional increment are both “establishing” in institutional development, and also, in a specific sense, breaking the systems and mechanisms that are incompatible with the development of productive forces and society: “Both reform the systems, mechanisms, laws, and regulations that do not meet the requirements of practical development, and continuously construct new systems, mechanisms, laws, and regulations, making various systems more scientific and more complete, and achieving the institutionalization, standardization, and proceduralization of the governance of Party, state, and social affairs.” This together constitutes the “establishing” in institutional development. Therefore, taking institutional development as the main line to lead the further comprehensive deepening of reform is a process of combining “breaking” and “establishing,” with establishing before breaking. Consequently, we must, centering on the overall goal of further comprehensively deepening reform, correctly grasp the connotations of breaking and establishing and their interrelationship, unify the reform of institutional stock and increment, and steadily and gradually advance institutional optimization and innovation.

同时，在进一步全面深化改革的过程中，必须深刻把握制度建设中蕴含的破立结合、先立后破的辩证法。首先，以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革，必须锚定进一步全面深化改革总目标。其次，深刻把握制度建设中的破与立的内涵。进一步全面深化改革中的“立”，主要是针对既有体制机制的弊端的改革代替，实际上是对于中国特色社会主义制度的强化和优化，使得中国特色社会主义制度的优势得到更加充分的发挥。就此而言，制度建设和深化改革中围绕既有体制机制弊端的“破”，本质上都是“立”。第三，在全面深化改革中，制度存量的优化与制度增量的创新，实际上都是制度建设的“立”，也都是在特定意义上破除不适应生产力和社会发展的体制机制，“既改革不适应实践发展要求的体制机制、法律法规，又不断构建新的体制机制、法律法规，使各方面制度更加科学、更加完善，实现党、国家、社会各项事务治理制度化、规范化、程序化。”由此共同构成了制度建设中的“立”，所以，以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革，是“破”与“立”结合、先立后破的过程。因此，必须围绕进一步全面深化改革的总目标，正确把握破与立的内涵及其相互关系，以制度的存量与增量改革统一，平稳逐步推进制度优化和创新。

Institutional development adheres to problem orientation, placing greater emphasis on systemic integration, highlighting key points, and reform effectiveness in institutional supply. General Secretary Xi Jinping has clearly stated: “The Chinese Communists engage in revolution, construction, and reform always to solve China’s practical problems.” Practice shows that the deeper reform and opening up go, the more intertwined, overlapping, and complex the problems become. Therefore, taking institutional development as the main line to lead the further comprehensive deepening of reform is essentially about further solving the prominent contradictions and deep-seated problems facing Chinese-path modernization, and continuously promoting the self-improvement and development of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. “Further comprehensively deepening reform must highlight problem orientation, focusing on solving the blocking and bottleneck problems that constrain the construction of a new development pattern and high-quality development, the pain points and difficult problems in the development environment and people’s livelihood, and the focal and hot issues that contradict social fairness and justice.”

制度建设坚持问题导向，在制度供给中更加注重系统集成、突出重点和改革实效。习近平总书记鲜明提出：“中国共产党人干革命、搞建设、抓改革，从来都是为了解决中国的现实问题。”实践表明，改革开放越往纵深发展，问题越加交织叠加、错综复杂，因此，以制度建设为主线挈领进一步全面深化改革，本质上是要进一步解决中国式现代化发展面临的突出矛盾和深层次问题，不断推进中国特色社会主义制度自我完善和发展。“进一步全面深化改革要突出问题导向，着力解决制约构建新发展格局和推动高质量发展的卡点堵点问题、发展环境和民生领域的痛点难点问题、有悖社会公平正义的焦点热点问题”。

Institutional development focuses on the institutional and mechanistic problems that hinder the development of productive forces and social vitality. Practice shows that such problems can occur in both institutional stock and institutional increment. Problems arising from institutional stock are usually systemic obstacles and mechanistic blockages, while problems in institutional increment are often relatively concentrated in insufficient institutional supply and inadequate policy innovation. Therefore, the key to further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing institutional development lies in grasping the main points, highlighting the reform of systems and mechanisms, and emphasizing major strategic and overall reforms. “To solve the stock problems in institutional development, to respond to the incremental problems of institutional development and the growing demand for institutions, we need to face problems directly, highlight key points, set reform agendas around solving prominent problems, and comprehensively advance institutional development in the process of resolving contradictions and problems.”

制度建设以阻碍生产力发展和社会活力的体制机制问题为聚焦点。实践显示，这种问题在制度存量和制度增量方面都可能发生，制度存量发生的问题，通常是体制性障碍、机制性梗阻问题，而制度增量方面的问题，往往相对集中于制度供给不足、政策性创新不到位。因此，进一步全面深化改革，推进制度建设，关键在于抓住重点，突出体制机制改革，突出战略性、全局性重大改革。“破解制度建设方面的存量问题，应对制度建设的增量问题和日益增长的制度需求，需要直面问题，突出重点，围绕解决突出问题设置改革议题，在破解矛盾和问题过程中全面推进制度建设。”

Institutional building is problem-oriented and takes innovation as its path. As a supply-side structural optimization and reform of institutions, institutional building often begins with problems. Problems are contradictions; in the sense of institutional building, problems actually manifest an imbalance between institutional demand and institutional supply. In the process of solving problems and contradictions, the Party and the state continuously carry out policy innovation. The pilot implementation, trial operation, and comprehensive enforcement of innovative policies generate new economic and social effects. The repeated emergence of these new effects with comparative advantages triggers policy diffusion and prompts people to form new behavioral norms. The Party and the state confirm through statutory procedures those universally applicable behavioral norms that have proven effective in practice; these norms continuously aggregate into rules, agreements, and conventions, forming new mechanisms. As innovative mechanisms operate continuously, demands for optimizing and innovating structural rules naturally arise, causing mechanism innovation to gradually ascend to system innovation, and thereby achieving holistic institutional innovation. The causal factors of problems and the impetus of policies are thus transformed into the driving force of institutional supply. Through the effects of institutional innovation, the supply-side structural optimization and reform of institutions are advanced, achieving a relative balance between institutional demand and institutional supply, thereby enhancing national governance capacity, converting it into national governance effectiveness, and promoting multifaceted development in production and society. This evolutionary path from problems to institutions actually contains the generative and expansive path of China’s national institutions, constituting the developmental logic of institutional building in the further comprehensive deepening of reform.

制度建设以问题为导向，创新为路径。作为制度供给侧结构性优化和改革，制度建设往往是从问题开始的。问题即矛盾，在制度建设意义上，问题实际上显示着制度需求与制度供给之间的失衡。在解决问题和矛盾的过程中，党和国家不断进行政策创新，创新政策的试点试行和贯彻落实，会形成新的经济和社会效应，这些具有比较优势的新效应的反复出现，会引发政策扩散，并促使人们形成新的行为规范，党和国家以法定程序确认实践证明行之有效的普遍行为规范，这种规范持续聚合为规则、协定和惯例，形成新的机制。随着创新机制持续运行，优化和创新结构性规则的要求就会油然而生，这就使得机制创新逐步上升为体制创新，进而实现制度整体性创新，问题肇因与政策动力由此转化为制度供给动力，通过制度创新效应，推动制度供给侧结构性优化和改革，实现制度需求与制度供给的相对平衡，进而提高国家治理能力，转化为国家治理效能，促进生产和社会多方面的发展。这一从问题到制度的演化路径，实际上蕴含着我国国家制度的生成和推展路径，构成了进一步全面深化改革的制度建设发展逻辑。

In the New Era of further comprehensively deepening reform, reform faces more deep-seated institutional and mechanistic problems, higher demands for top-level design of reform, higher requirements for the systemic, holistic, and coordinated nature of reform, and higher standards for the quality of institutional building. Consequently, the tasks of institutional building are heavier, making it even more necessary to strengthen systemic, holistic, and coordinated approaches, and to place greater emphasis on systemic integration, highlighting key points, and reform effectiveness. On the new journey, systemic integration means focusing on holistic advancement, ensuring that institutional building in various fields and aspects is interconnected and mutually complementary, forming a system of institutions that is complete in system, scientific in norms, and effective in operation. Highlighting key points means focusing on the priorities of institutional building. Emphasizing effectiveness means focusing on the implementation and enforcement of institutions, translating institutions into concrete actions by the entire people to achieve national prosperity and national rejuvenation.

在进一步全面深化改革的新时代，改革面对的更多深层次体制机制问题，更高要求的改革顶层设计，更高水平的改革的系统性、整体性和协同性，更高标准的制度建设质量要求，由此使得制度建设的任务更重，这就更加需要强化系统性、整体性和协同性，更加需要注重系统集成、突出重点和改革实效。新征程上，系统集成是要注重整体推进，使得各领域、各方面的制度建设相互衔接、相互配套，形成系统完备、科学规范、运行有效的制度体系。突出重点是要注重制度建设的重点。注重实效是要注重制度实施和执行，把制度落实为全体人民实现国家富强、民族复兴的切实行动。

Viewed from the *Decision* [21]21 The *Decision* refers to the “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Promoting Chinese-Path Modernization,” adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC in July 2024., the integrated institutional building of a systemic, holistic, and coordinated nature lies not only in reforming and building the institutions and mechanisms of the state and society, but also in further upholding and improving the Party’s leadership system, enhancing the Party’s leadership level and long-term governance capacity, innovating and improving the Party’s leadership methods and governance methods, and perfecting the Party’s leadership system and Party rules and discipline; not only in building normative institutions, but also in perfecting enforcement institutions and strengthening institutions that regulate and constrain the behavior of institutional implementation; not only in building mandatory normative institutions and prohibitive normative institutions, but also in optimizing permissive normative institutions; not only in building constraining institutions, but also in perfecting incentive institutions; not only in building institutions for the operation of national governance, but also in constructing evaluation institutions and inspection institutions for reform, development, and governance. This forms an organic whole integration and fusion of institutional fields, departments, levels, processes, and institutional functions, creating a high-quality institutional system with systemic, holistic, coordinated, precise, and efficient characteristics, thereby “strengthening institutional implementation, institutional enforcement, and institutional operation, stimulating institutional vitality, forming institutional synergy, and continuously better transforming China’s institutional advantages into national governance effectiveness.”

从《决定》来看，系统性、整体性、协同性的集成型制度建设，不仅在于改革和建设国家和社会的制度和体制机制，而且在于进一步坚持和完善党的领导制度体系，提高党的领导水平和长期执政能力，创新和改进党的领导方式和执政方式，完善党的领导体制和党规党纪；不仅在于建设规范性制度，而且在于健全执行性制度，强化规范和约束制度执行行为的制度；不仅在于建设命令性规范制度和禁止性规范制度，而且在于优化允许性规范制度；不仅在于建设约束性制度，而且在于完善激励性制度；不仅在于建设治国理政运行的制度，而且在于构建改革、发展和治理的评估制度和检验制度，由此形成制度的领域、部门、层级、流程与制度功能的有机整体集成和融合，形成具有系统性、整体性、协同性、精准性和高效性的高质量制度体系，从而“强化制度落实、制度执行、制度运行，激发制度活力，形成制度合力，不断把我国制度优势更好转化为国家治理效能。”

The effectiveness of advancing Chinese-path modernization through further comprehensively deepening reform serves as the evaluation standard for institutional building. The vitality of institutions lies in their implementation, in their transformation into the effectiveness of national governance. The rationality, appropriateness, effectiveness, and quality of institutional building need to be tested through evaluation of institutional construction, operation, and development, “testing reform by actual performance, effectiveness, and the satisfaction of the people.” To this end, an important task of institutional building is to perfect the evaluation mechanism for institutional building, strengthen investigation and research, scientific design, correct evaluation, and risk identification in institutional building evaluation, and reinforce the implementation, evaluation, supervision, and adjustment of institutional building. Through the evaluation of institutional building, institutions are continuously optimized and innovated, enabling institutional building to constantly adapt to the requirements of advanced productive forces and the development of the economic base, so that the further comprehensive deepening of reform achieves the construction goals of Chinese-path modernization and the demands of the people.

以进一步全面深化改革推进中国式现代化的效能作为制度建设的评估标准。制度的生命力在于执行，在于转化成为国家治理的效能。制度建设的合理性、适切性、有效性和质量性，需要通过对于制度建设、运行和发展的评估予以检验，“以实绩实效和人民群众满意度检验改革”，为此，制度建设的重要任务是健全制度建设评估机制，加强制度建设评估的调查研究、科学设计、正确评估和风险识别，强化制度建设的执行、评估、监督和调整，通过制度建设的评估，不断优化和创新制度，使得制度建设不断适应先进生产力和经济基础发展的要求，使得进一步全面深化改革达成中国式现代化的建设目标和人民群众的要求。

It must be emphasized that the evaluation of institutions is complex and multidimensional, and the evaluation of institutional building is even more an integration of multiple elements, disciplines, fields, and functions. People often use indicator systems such as institutional adaptability, completeness, operability, fairness, and sustainability to evaluate institutions and institutional building. Nevertheless, it should first be fully recognized that national institutional building is highly political and value-oriented. In this regard, the fundamental standard for evaluating institutions and institutional building lies in: For whom? Serving whom? Relying on whom? “Whether a social system is scientific and advanced is mainly judged by whether it suits national conditions, whether it is effective and practical, and whether it wins the people’s support. The national systems and legal systems of socialism with Chinese characteristics are a set of institutional systems that work, are truly effective, and are efficient.” Only under this premise can we correctly evaluate institutional building and institutional development in the further comprehensive deepening of reform, construct a correct indicator system for evaluating institutional innovation and the effectiveness of institutional operation, actively carry out scientific and reasonable evaluations, and strengthen the implementation, evaluation, supervision, and adjustment of institutional building, so that the further comprehensive deepening of reform achieves the grand goal of Chinese-path modernization.

需要强调指出的是，制度的评估是复杂和多维的，制度建设的评估更是多要素、多学科、多领域和多功能的集成。人们常常采用制度的适应性、完整性、可操作性、公正性和可持续性等等指标体系来评估制度和制度建设，尽管如此，首先应该充分认识到，国家制度建设具有高度政治性和价值取向性，就此而言，评估制度和制度建设的根本标准在于为了谁？服务谁？依靠谁？“衡量一个社会制度是否科学、是否先进，主要看是否符合国情、是否有效管用、是否得到人民拥护。中国特色社会主义国家制度和法律制度是一套行得通、真管用、有效率的制度体系。”只有在此前提下，才能正确评估进一步全面深化改革中的制度建设和制度发展，构建正确评估制度创新和制度运行效能的指标体系，积极展开科学合理的评估，强化制度建设的执行、评估、监督和调整，使得进一步全面深化改革达成中国式现代化的宏伟目标。

(Author: Wang Puqu, Dean of the National Academy of Governance, Peking University, Doctoral Supervisor)

（作者：王浦劬，北京大学国家治理研究院院长、博士研究生导师）

Online Editor: You Heng

网络编辑：有恒