Chinese Premier Li Keqiang kept the focus on the economy and skirted questions about COVID-19 origins, during a media briefing held on the last day of annual legislative and political meetings.

Li would not be drawn on questions by foreign media about the possibility of China providing COVID-19 data to the World Health Organization or doubts that the state was less than transparent in tracing the source of the coronavirus.

He was meeting with reporters via video conference after China’s top lawmaking and political advisory bodies concluded the “two sessions” on Thursday.

The premier, who was also head of the State Council, stressed that employment was one of the most important issues for a country and also for a family. The government’s top concern at the moment was widespread joblessness, he said.

Last year, the central government did not establish economic growth targets due to the vast uncertainties under which broader policy decisions were being made, Li said. Still, the state did put up a target of creating jobs for nine million people.

In the end, close to 12 million jobs were created, the economy grew by 2.3%, and income increases were better than expected, he said.

The pressure to create enough jobs would remain this year, Li said. Another 14 million people were entering the labor force this year, including more than nine million high school graduates, the highest on record. There was also a push to help retired military personnel to find jobs, and to provide work opportunities for 270 million to 280 million farmers.

This year’s focus would therefore continue to fall on employment. The government aimed to create new jobs for 11 million people. If people had work, money would be made and the economy would naturally grow, he said.

On the ageing population, Li said China had 260 million elderly people, so industries related to the elderly could be areas of growth.

The Chinese government hoped to strengthen the recovering economy and to promote lasting high-quality development which could stabilize economic growth for the next two years, he said.

This year’s GDP growth target was set at 6%, the premier said. Growth of 6% would translate into 6 trillion yuan (US$921 billion), which is more realistic than the 8% growth needed to get the country back on track with its 13th Five-Year Plan for 2016 to 2020.

When reporters asked if it was too cautious an estimation, Li said “it’s not considered low.” He said the government had to be pragmatic in its estimates and take into account the fact that the economy was still recovering, with the global economic outlook remaining volatile.

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