Xi extends Spring Festival greetings

President Xi Jinping has extended Spring Festival greetings to Chinese people at home and abroad ahead of the festival, during a two-day fact-finding trip in Beijing.

Xi wished the people good health, success in their careers, and happiness for their families in the Year of the Horse, and wished the country peace and prosperity.

Spring Festival, or the Chinese New Year, which falls on Feb 17 this year, is the most important holiday on the Chinese calendar and a time for family reunions. Since his election as general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee in 2012, Xi has made it a tradition to visit ordinary people across the country ahead of the festival.

On Tuesday morning, Xi visited a Beijing downtown community, which was renovated to be barrier-free and age-friendly. He visited a community canteen for seniors to learn about the meal services provided there.

"Caring for and supporting the elderly is a shared responsibility of the whole society," Xi said, calling for efforts to create better conditions for them to enjoy happy and fulfilling twilight years.

When meeting three delivery riders taking a break at the seniors' community canteen, Xi inquired with concern about how long they had been delivering packages and appreciated their hard work and contributions.

In Xicheng district, Xi also visited an apartment complex for seniors, where he spent time with the elderly, wishing them health, longevity and a happy Spring Festival.

Arriving at the Longfusi commercial area in Dongcheng district, Xi was briefed on urban renewal efforts there. He stopped by a store of the traditional bakery brand Daoxiangcun, where he watched pastry-making. Addressing large crowds of residents and visitors at a bustling festive market, Xi noted that Tuesday coincided with Little New Year, or Xiaonian in northern China, which is celebrated about a week before Spring Festival. Xi said he had come especially to celebrate the occasion with the public and welcome Spring Festival together.

He visited various stalls selling festive goods and talked with people there, sharing memories of his visits to the area when he was young. He also bought some specialty food and culture-themed products.

Xi said he was very pleased to see the bustling, vibrant festive scene and well-stocked holiday goods there. "Spring Festival is an important occasion for the people," Xi said, urging officials at all levels to make solid efforts in ensuring people's well-being and strengthening workplace safety, so that everyone can enjoy a joyful Chinese New Year.

During the two-day trip, Xi also heard a work report by municipal officials.

Xi urged Beijing to align its development with the strategic positioning defined by the CPC Central Committee, and to promote economic and social development with targeted and practical measures during the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30) period.

The Chinese capital should make decisive strides in taking the lead in basically realizing socialist modernization and better serve as a national pacesetter, he said.

He underscored the importance of steadily relocating functions nonessential to Beijing's role as the national capital, a key task in advancing the coordinated development in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

As China moves to expand Beijing's international tech innovation center to include the entire Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, Xi said the capital should enhance coordinated innovation and industrial collaboration with Tianjin and Hebei province to ensure regional integration yields more tangible results.

Beijing should actively develop modern service industries, leverage the city's rich cultural resources and promote the integrated development of culture, commerce, tourism, sports and exhibitions, Xi said.

To build Beijing into a world-class harmonious and livable city, Xi also called for efforts to advance urban governance, strengthen its disaster prevention, mitigation and relief capacity, address the pressing concerns of the public, and foster a green, low-carbon and livable environment, among other priorities.

Xinhua contributed to this story.