Xi's article on enhancing disaster management capacity to be published

An article by Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on enhancing disaster prevention, mitigation and relief capabilities will be published on Sunday.

The article by Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, will be published in this year's 16th issue of the Qiushi Journal, a flagship magazine of the CPC Central Committee.

China has a vast territory, complex geography and diverse climate, making it prone to frequent natural disasters, the article says.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the CPC Central Committee has led officials and the public in overcoming a series of major natural disasters, minimizing casualties and property losses to the greatest extent possible, with achievements widely recognized by the international community.

According to the article, to ensure effective disaster prevention, mitigation and relief work, it is a must to uphold the Party's overall leadership, put people and their lives first, respect the laws of nature, prioritize prevention, pursue reform and innovation, take a systematic approach and promote public participation.

China's disaster prevention, mitigation and relief work currently faces many new situations and challenges, the article says, stressing the need to fully recognize the utmost importance of such work, build on strengths, address weaknesses and continuously improve the country's capabilities and competence to respond to natural disasters.

Such efforts can help effectively safeguard people's lives and property, maintain social stability and ensure steady and sustained progress in Chinese modernization.

The article calls for a more prevention-focused approach to disaster management, incorporating safety and resilience requirements into territorial spatial planning and various construction plans, and appropriately raising the disaster-resilience standards for key infrastructure in major cities and disaster-prone areas.

It is important to strengthen the response to major and catastrophic disasters, the article says, highlighting the need to conduct in-depth assessments of such disaster risks, continuously improve emergency response plans and make early warnings more timely, accurate and accessible.

The article underscores efforts to strengthen support from science and technology and the rule of law, promote technological and industrial innovation in emergency management and deepen international exchanges and cooperation in science and technology for disaster prevention, mitigation and relief.