Progress in programs for people with disabilities lauded

President Xi Jinping joined more than 600 delegates from across the country on Sep.18 at the opening ceremony of the 8th National Congress of the China Disabled Persons' Federation in Beijing.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, attended the event with other Party and State leaders including Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning and Cai Qi. Ding Xuexiang delivered a speech at the opening ceremony on behalf of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, China's Cabinet.

Noting the significant achievements made in the past decade by the country's programs for people with disabilities, Ding said that China has achieved the goal of "leaving no disabled people behind while completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects" on schedule.

"In the fight against poverty, we have made disabled individuals a priority group, and over 7.1 million disabled people from rural areas have been lifted out of poverty, fundamentally changing the unfortunate fate of people with disabilities being trapped in poverty for thousands of years," he said.

The nation has also established systems dedicated to the disabled, such as living allowances for disabled people in need, nursing subsidies for the severely disabled, and rehabilitation assistance for disabled children, benefiting over 20 million disabled people, Ding said.

He urged efforts to promote the well-rounded development and common prosperity of the disabled, saying that special attention should be given to the disabled individuals in the pursuit of Chinese modernization.

Zhang Haidi, chairwoman of the China Disabled Persons' Federation, delivered a work report at the congress on Monday on behalf of the federation's seventh presidium.

China has around 85 million people with disabilities. Since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012, the country has made continuous efforts in promoting the cause of people with disabilities, such as guaranteeing their basic livelihoods, rehabilitation, education and employment, as well as promoting the construction of barrier-free environments.

The nation's first law on a barrier-free living environment took effect earlier this month, and various regions and departments are making every effort to promote the high-quality development of a barrier-free environment.