四是堅持實施科教興國戰略，增強經濟社會發展的核心支撐能力。我們加快實施國家中長期科學和技術發展規劃綱要，制定實施國家中長期教育改革和發展規劃綱要、國家中長期人才發展規劃綱要和國家知識產權戰略，推動科技、教育、文化事業全面發展，為國家長遠發展奠定了堅實基礎。

優先發展教育事業。國家財政性教育經費支出五年累計7.79萬億元，年均增長21.58%，2012年占國內生產總值比例達到4%。教育資源重點向農村、邊遠、民族、貧困地區傾斜，教育公平取得明顯進步。全面實現城鄉九年免費義務教育，惠及1.6億學生。實施學前教育三年行動計劃，“入園難”問題有所緩解。國家助學制度不斷完善，建立了家庭經濟困難學生資助體系，實現從學前教育到研究生教育各個階段全覆蓋，每年資助金額近1000億元，資助學生近8000萬人次。實施中等職業教育免學費政策，覆蓋范圍包括所有農村學生、城市涉農專業學生和家庭經濟困難學生。初步解決進城務工人員隨遷子女在城市接受義務教育問題，現有1260萬農村戶籍孩子在城市接受義務教育。實施惠及3000多萬農村義務教育階段學生營養改善計劃。完成中小學校舍安全工程。加快職業教育基礎能力和特殊教育基礎設施建設。義務教育學校實施績效工資，在教育部直屬師范大學實行師范生免費教育，加強了農村教師隊伍建設。全面提高教育質量和水平，高等教育毛入學率提高到30%。國民受教育程度大幅提升，15歲以上人口平均受教育年限達到9年以上。

大力推動自主創新。中央財政用于科技的投入五年累計8729億元，年均增長超過18%。全社會研究與試驗發展經費支出占國內生產總值的比重由2007年的1.4%提高到2012年的1.97%，企業研發活動支出占比超過74%。出臺深化科技體制改革加快國家創新體系建設的意見。深入實施國家技術創新工程和知識創新工程，扎實推進國家科技重大專項，新建一批國家工程中心、重點實驗室和企業技術中心。加強基礎研究和前沿探索，突破一批關鍵核心技術，填補了多項重大產品和裝備的空白。

深入實施人才強國戰略。以高層次、高技能人才為重點，加強各類人才隊伍建設，專業技術人才、高技能人才分別增加860萬人和880萬人，留學回國人員達到54萬人。

大力加強文化建設。覆蓋城鄉的公共文化設施網絡體系初步建成，博物館、圖書館、文化館（站）實現免費開放。國有經營性文化單位轉企改制任務基本完成，公益性文化事業單位內部機制改革不斷深化。哲學社會科學、新聞出版、廣播影視、文學藝術等更加繁榮，文化產業快速發展。文物保護、非物質文化遺產保護和傳承取得重要進展。對外文化交流更加活躍。全民健身和競技體育取得新成績。

4. Steadfastly implementing the strategy for making China strong through the development of science and education, and boosting the country's core ability to sustain economic and social development

We accelerated implementation of the National Plan for Long- and Medium-Term Scientific and Technological Development; formulated and implemented the National Plan for Long- and Medium-Term Education Reform and Development, the National Plan for Long- and Medium-Term Development of Competent Personnel and the national strategy on intellectual property rights. This gave impetus to all-around progress in science and technology, education, and culture and laid a solid foundation for ensuring China's long-term development.

We gave high priority to developing education. Government spending on education totaled 7.79 trillion yuan over the past five years, increasing at an average annual rate of 21.58% to reach 4% of GDP in 2012. We allocated educational resources, giving priority to rural, remote, poor and ethnic minority areas and made notable progress in improving fairness in education. We made free nine-year compulsory education universal across the country, benefiting 160 million students. A three-year action plan for preschool education was carried out, and the shortage of preschools was eased. We improved the system of state financial aid to students, and established a system for giving students from poor families financial aid from preschool through graduate school. We spent approximately 100 billion yuan annually for this purpose and assisted nearly 80 million students. We implemented the policy of tuition-free secondary vocational education for all rural students and all urban students who study agriculture-related majors or are from poor families. The problem of providing compulsory education to children of rural migrants working in cities was basically solved, and 12.6 million children with rural residence status are now receiving compulsory education in cities. We implemented the plan for improving nutrition of rural students receiving compulsory education to the benefit of over 30 million students. We completed the project to improve the safety of primary and secondary school buildings. We sped up development of infrastructure for vocational and special education. The pay of teachers in compulsory education is now linked to their performance. Students majoring in education at teachers universities directly under the Ministry of Education were exempted from paying tuition, and the ranks of rural teachers were strengthened. The quality and level of education in China was comprehensively raised, and the gross college enrollment rate rose to 30%. The education level of the people was raised significantly, and the average length of schooling of people over the age of 15 now exceeds nine years.

We vigorously promoted innovation. The central government spent 872.9 billion yuan to develop science and technology in the past five years, with an average annual increase of over 18%. China's R&D spending accounted for 1.97% of GDP in 2012, up from 1.4% in 2007, and over 74% of this spending was made by companies. The Guidelines on Deepening Reform of the Management System for Science and Technology and Accelerating Development of a National Innovation System were adopted. We carried out a national technology innovation project and a knowledge innovation project, made solid progress in implementing major national R&D projects, and set up a number of national engineering centers, key laboratories and enterprise technology centers. We boosted basic research and research in frontier areas, made breakthroughs in a number of core and key technologies, and filled in gaps in many important products and equipment.

We implemented the strategy for making China strong through training competent personnel. We trained more personnel of all types, with the focus on high-level and highly skilled personnel. As a result, the number of personnel with special expertise and highly skilled personnel increased by 8.6 million and 8.8 million respectively. A total of 540,000 overseas students returned.

We put greater effort into developing the cultural sector. A network of public cultural facilities covering both urban and rural areas is taking shape, and all museums, libraries and cultural centers in China are open to the public free of charge. We basically transformed state-owned for-profit cultural institutions into business enterprises, and deepened reform of internal operating mechanisms of nonprofit cultural institutions. Philosophy and the social sciences, the press and publishing, radio, television and film, and literature and art are flourishing, and cultural industries developed rapidly. We made major progress in protecting cultural relics and preserving and passing on intangible cultural heritage. Cultural exchanges with other countries increased. New progress was made in nationwide fitness activities and competitive sports.