Premier Li Keqiang urged the government to take seriously people’s livelihoods and address their concerns, to enable people of all ethnic groups to have a better life, thus paving the way for building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

He made the remarks during an inspection tour to Xining, capital of Northwest China’s Qinghai province, from Jan 21 to 22, ahead of the Chinese Lunar New Year.

Premier Li's inspection started at a farm produce fair, where he joined local vendors and shoppers, offering them his holiday greetings. He then inquired about the supply and prices of commodities, especially beef, mutton and pork.

To enable all families to have a happy traditional festival, meat supply must be sufficient with stable prices, he said, emphasizing the implementation of support measures to ensure that people in need can afford meat.

Premier Li also visited Heicheng village, Xinzhuang county, where some villagers belong to the Han or Tibetan ethnic group, to gain a picture of their living conditions. He brought them some goods for the Spring Festival and wished them a happy new year.

Sitting on the kang, a heated brick bed, Premier Li chatted with local farmers, and learned that working in cities now makes up the lion’s share of their income.

Working in cities is an important way for farmers to move out of poverty, the Premier acknowledged. He then said the western region should accelerate new urbanization, through which central cities can take the lead in bringing more job opportunities, thus helping lift them out of poverty and even become well-off.

Premier Li also visited the site of a recent road collapse accident in the capital city that caused casualties. He required local government departments and officials to draw lessons from the tragedy and take follow-up actions.

Work must be done to identify potential safety hazards posed by urban public infrastructure, he said, with equal attention given to solving problems in existing facilities and ensuring the quality of new construction projects.

Only when urban construction, both above-ground and underground, follows a quality-first approach can the people gain a sense of security and happiness, he said.

The director of Qinghai Red Cross Hospital reported to Premier Li that the hospital had taken measures according to the nation’s requirements on preventing and controlling the novel coronavirus-related pneumonia, including opening a fever clinic.

Premier Li said he noticed many people are going home for family reunions from East and Central China, as is tradition during the Spring Festival travel rush. Each city and province should bear its own territorial regulatory responsibility, and each department should further improve and implement the prevention and control measures. "With openness and transparency, we should scientifically cope with the current situation in a timely and effective manner," he said.

Premier Li told the medical workers that they should work harder around the clock while ensuring self-protection, in order to concentrate all their professional efforts to save the patients and contain the disease outbreak.

He then visited altitude sickness patients, mentioning that the cold season is the high-incidence season for altitude sickness. The region has attached great importance to the disease’s prevention and treatment. The medical staff should do their best to save every patient, in order to better protect the lives and health of people, said Premier Li.

At an old residential community, Premier Li listened to the local renovation plan. He asked the residents about heating, water supply and drainage and community services, and found that they are strongly in favor of renovations, even if they had to spend some money.

"We should definitely do what people expect us to do, and we need to do it well," said the Premier, mentioning that the large-scale shantytown renovation over the years has improved people’s living conditions.

Premier Li defined old residential community renovation as both a livelihood project and a development project. As a result, the government should create more supportive measures. Also, residents should work together to attract more social forces to participate in the renovation project, enriching services for elder care, medical treatment, catering and house cleaning. It not only enables the older citizens to spend their remaining years in comfort, but also ensures better growth for the children.

He also talked with diners at a street snack stall selling pancakes in mutton soup, and urged the owner to keep the dishes delicious while ensuring food hygiene.

Premier Li affirmed the economic and social achievements made by Qinghai in recent years, and extended his hope for the province to continue to see more development through aggressive practices under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with President Xi Jinping as the core.

Xiao Jie, state councilor and secretary-general of the State Council, also went on the inspection.