China to Expand Support for Revolutionary Base Areas in 15th Plan

What changed

China’s central government will increase support for revolutionary base areas during the 15th Five-Year Plan. The National Development and Reform Commission says existing transfer-payment channels will continue, while central investment subsidies will vary by local conditions.

The programme will also expand counterpart cooperation, including:

• Cadre placements and professional training
• Industrial and innovation platforms
• Infrastructure and public-service projects
• Support for distinctive local industries and new urbanisation

Why it matters

This is a broad regional-development policy, but its practical test will be local delivery. The stated aim is to close gaps in infrastructure and public services while building stronger support in education, technology and talent.

The central government says infrastructure should move “appropriately ahead” of demand, without overbuilding. That wording matters: it signals an attempt to improve roads, facilities and public services while keeping projects tied to actual development needs.

For local governments, the counterpart programme could bring more than funding. Officials, trained specialists, industrial projects and innovation platforms are all part of the proposed support. The likely benefit, if implementation follows the plan, is a deeper pool of skills and institutions in areas that have struggled to sustain growth.

The policy’s scale is still unclear. No total funding figure, beneficiary locations, project count or delivery timetable was given. What comes next is therefore less about the announcement’s ambition than about which places receive projects, how investment is allocated and whether the promised talent and industrial support arrives alongside the concrete infrastructure.