China's draft law on private sector promotion to boost confidence of private sector

The draft law on private sector promotion presented to China's top legislature has undergone animated group deliberations,with lawmakers believing that it will significantly boost the confidence of the private sector.

As the country's first basic law focused on the development of the private sector, it marks a key step toward formalizing effective policies and reforms into legal protections and support.

Comprising nine chapters and 78 articles, the draft addresses key issues such as fair competition, investment and financing reforms, as well as intellectual property protection.

"We hope that the law will provide more private enterprises with a better business environment and greater opportunities for development. I think this draft has provided a directional initiative. But when it comes to implementing specific measures, we hope to see more detailed and comprehensive plans, such as for private enterprises to achieve truly fair competition with the state-owned enterprises and participate fairly in the international market environment," said Fu Zhiwei, a deputy to the 14th National People's Congress (NPC) and chairman of Xuzhou B and C Chemical.

Lawmakers have warmly welcomed the draft, believing that it will bolster confidence of the private sector, especially that of foreign investors in fair treatment and protection in China.

"I fully support the introduction of this bill to support the private enterprises. We all understand that private enterprise and businesses are very, very important to every economy. The introduction of this bill is to deliver very clear message and signal to all stakeholders, including the foreign enterprises. We have measure and we have mechanism in place to facilitate investment from foreign enterprises, make sure that they are treated equally, and also their right and things will be protected under this law," said Starry Lee Wai-king, a NPC deputy and a member of the Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

As of September 2024, over 55 million private enterprises had been registered nationwide. According to official data, private enterprises accounted for over 92 percent of the county's businesses last year.

Experts say the draft law is of great and far-reaching significance for further optimizing the development of the private economy, accelerating and promoting a new development pattern.

China's draft law on private sector promotion to boost confidence of private sector

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimated that daily fish catches in the Gaza Strip between October 2023 and April 2024 dropped to only 7.3 percent of that of 2022, which is expected to further worsen the food insecurity and famine risks in the region.

According to Ahmed El-Ejla, project coordinator at Al-Tawfiq Cooperative Society for Fisheries, many fishing boats, nets and conservation facilities were destroyed in the latest round of the Israel-Hamas conflict which broke out in October last year.

"Fishermen in Gaza are supposed to catch 15 to 20 tons of fish on a daily basis during this season. However, they would only catch 2 to 5 kilograms of fish everyday as of now," he said.

Khaled Radwan Ahmad Al-Laham, a 35-year-old fisher from Khan Younis who previously benefited from the marine cage farms within the FAO project, was able to make a living. He said the war had destroyed his life, and left local fishers in huge losses "We were able to get by before the war. The sea provided us with a source of income and employment. We were satisfied and getting by as everything just went fine. However, the war broke out and brought an end to everything." he said.

Israeli forces have imposed a fishing ban over adjacent waters off the Gaza Strip, which restricted the entry of local fishers, leaving most fishermen without an access to the sea for fishing.

Even if they fish in near-shore waters, fishermen still face great security risks.

"Most of the fishermen mention that their assets, their vessels, all of their belongings have been destroyed during the war. They cannot access the sea."said Wael Aldaya, FAO fisheries project manager.

Local fishers hope that they can reach the waters as early as possible to continue their normal lives. "My wish is that they could open the sea for us, so we can go fishing safely. Then I hope they would provide us with fishing supplies, like nets, fiberglass and these things, so we can survive on our own," said Khaled Radwan Ahmad Al-Laham, a local fisher. .

Gaza's fishing industry hit hard in latest round of Israel-Hamas conflict