FACT BOX

China has seen significant improvement in its air quality in the past decade. Beijing, for instance, saw its average density of PM2.5 particulate matter decrease from 89.5 micrograms per cubic meter in 2013 to 32 mcg/cubic m last year.

On Jan 11, the country's central authorities unveiled a guideline for promoting the Beautiful China Initiative, a development blueprint detailing specific targets for a wide range of sectors for the nation's green and high-quality growth.

The document vowed to further reduce the average PM2.5 density across the country to below 28 mcg/cubic m by 2027 and then below 25 mcg/cubic m by 2035.

The average density of the pollutant in the country's 339 major cities stood at 30 mcg/cubic m in 2023.

Air pollution control is one of the major concerns of the Chinese leadership. In an article published in January in Qiushi Journal, President Xi Jinping stressed that blue sky protection was the top priority of China's pollution control campaign.

The regional coordination for air quality management should be further enhanced and more comprehensive measures should be rolled out to accelerate the eradication of heavy air pollution events, he noted.