The 14th Five-year plan and the development of education in China

Abstract

Over the past two years, the world economy has been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the processes of globalization and regional international economic integration have faced new challenges, trade protectionism has intensified, international labor migration and international technology exchange have slowed down. Under such conditions, it is difficult to maintain China's former economic model based on imitation of innovation, cheap and mass labor of average qualification, and orientation towards export of products. China's response to the current trends and problems of economic development is the implementation of the "14th Five-Year Plan" (2021-2025), as well as the longer-term perspective of the PRC’s Vision 2035. This period is a preparatory stage in China's realization of its long-term goal of achieving the income level of developed countries and becoming a developed and sustainable economy by 2035. Education is undoubtedly the most important factor in human capital development, increasing national prosperity, and a source of long-term economic growth. Over the past 20 years, China has caught up on key education indicators with many middle-income and high-income countries. Based on the results of the 14th Plan, we predict that by 2025 China will be able to meet its educational targets and come close to achieving the long-term goals of 2035. Despite the success in some quantitative indicators, the Chinese government should pay attention to the objective problems of current national educational system, in particular its overall basic quality level which is lower than the average one of OECD countries, some hidden inequities such as the more than five-fold gap in financial investment in education between regions and the level of education which is 15 years behind that of the developed countries.