New five-year mission

In his signature candid manner, Premier Wen Jiabao addressed some of the toughest questions facing the country at the press conference that capped the annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC), the national legislature.

Although the development program the NPC has approved for the next five years has set a lower target for growth, the coming years are likely to be more challenging than ever.

The variety of balancing acts that will need to be carried out calls for sophisticated helmsmanship at all levels of government. That is where the real challenges lie.