President Xi Jinping on Saturday said China is “entering a new phase” in Covid control, urging “extra effort” in a bid to counter the “tough challenges” in fighting the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak in the country ever since Beijing relaxed its stringent policy of lockdowns and mass testing, pivoting towards “living with the virus”.
In his annual televised speech to mark the New Year, Xi said China had “adapted” its Covid response to the evolving situation, his latest public comments on the surge of infections
“Following a science-based and targeted approach, we have adapted our Covid response in light of the evolving situation to protect the life and health of the people to the greatest extent possible,” Xi said, according to an official transcript of the speech released by the state-run Xinhua news agency.
“With extraordinary efforts, we have prevailed over unprecedented difficulties and challenges, and it has not been an easy journey for anyone,” he said in a rare admission of the difficulties China is facing in controlling the massive surge in infections reported from across the country since early December.
“We have now entered a new phase of Covid response where tough challenges remain. Everyone is holding on with great fortitude, and the light of hope is right in front of us. Let’s make an extra effort to pull through, as perseverance and solidarity mean victory,” Xi said.
{{/usCountry}}“We have now entered a new phase of Covid response where tough challenges remain. Everyone is holding on with great fortitude, and the light of hope is right in front of us. Let’s make an extra effort to pull through, as perseverance and solidarity mean victory,” Xi said.
{{/usCountry}}The outbreak in China has led to several countries, fearing an international outbreak and new variants, to impose travel restrictions on Chinese travellers. Britain and France on Friday were the latest countries to impose curbs on travellers coming China.
Xi delivered his address as the State Council, China’s cabinet, published a working plan to tackle an expected surge of infections in rural China as hundreds of millions of people begin travelling for the upcoming Chinese New Year holidays in January.
The State Council’s joint prevention and control mechanism and the central leading group for rural affairs jointly published a work plan on Saturday, “specifying to-dos to strengthen the grassroot-level epidemic control system, ensuring supplies of medicines and enhancing protection of vulnerable groups so that rural areas can cope with contagion risks linked to the holiday travel peak,” the state-run Global Times tabloid reported on Saturday.
According to the 2021 population census, China has 509.8 million rural residents.
“Villages across China, where medical resources are relatively scarce and less accessible, are gearing up to prepare for the risks as large groups of people are travelling and returning to hometowns amid the “two holidays” - the New Year Holiday and the Spring Festival holiday,” the GT report said.