President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the Forum on the Eco-conservation and Quality Development of the Yellow River Basin on September 18, 2019 (XINHUA)

Continuous downpours have sent water levels soaring in many rivers and lakes in some regions of China. President Xi Jinping, also General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, has underlined the importance of flood prevention and disaster relief, saying "all-out efforts are needed to ensure safety of people's lives and property." Edited excerpts of Xi's speeches since 2018 follow:  

Flood control and rescue concern the safety of people's lives and property, as well as food, economic, social and national security.  

-Excerpts from Xi's speech at a meeting of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee on flood control and disaster relief on July 17 

Serious efforts must be made to assist the flood-affected low-income residents so that they will not fall back into poverty because of the disasters.  

-Excerpts from Xi's instruction on furthering flood prevention and rescue on July 12, 2020 

When the Yellow River is harnessed, China is serene. With this in mind, we must make every effort to adjust the sediment-water ratio of the Yellow River. 

-Excerpts from Xi's speech at the Forum on the Eco-conservation and Quality Development of the Yellow River Basin on September 18, 2019 

The government needs to firmly adhere to a people-centered approach, carry out rescue and relief work at full strength, minimize casualties, properly arrange people's lives in disaster areas and reduce disaster losses to the minimum. 

Monitoring and early warnings of meteorological, flooding, and geological disasters should be enhanced and inspections of major areas should be strengthened to prevent disasters and secondary disasters. 

-Excerpts from Xi's instruction on flood control and disaster relief in July 2018 

Voice

Yu Yong

China is one of the countries that suffer most from extreme weather events and meteorological disasters. However, China’s ability to cope with disasters has significantly improved in recent years, something that the CPC and the Central Government give great importance to. As a result, casualties and the proportion of direct economic losses to the GDP have declined remarkably.