Development Research Center of the State Council (DRC) is a comprehensive policy research and consulting institution directly under the State Council, the central government of the People’s Republic of China. Its main functions include:
     1. Conduct follow-up and advanced study on the overall, comprehensive, strategic and long-term issues in the national economic and social development so as to provide policy recommendations and consulting advices to the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, as well as decision-making proposals for mid- and long-term development plans and regional development policies; participate in and sponsor the entrusted study and demonstration of the development programs worked out by relevant departments and localities and put forward its advices and proposals.
     2. Study the trends in the development of the national economy and analyze the macroeconomic situation so as to provide advices and proposals for the comprehensive application of macroeconomic policies.
     3. Study the industrial economic development and industrial policies, offer consulting advices and proposals on the adjustment orientation of industrial structure, investment structure, enterprise organization structure and ownership structure and the policies for technology selection and innovation as well as the development of new and high technologies.
     4. Study the new situation and new issues in China’s opening-up process, the foreign trade policy and policy for utilizing foreign investment and provide policy recommendations; undertake research on the trends in the development of the world economy as well as the experiences and lessons so as to provide reference for China’s reform and development.
     5. Study the policies for human resource development, income distribution and social security in the national economic and social development as well as the policies for rational development and utilization of natural resources, ecological balance and environmental protection.
     6. Conduct international collaborative research and exchanges with relevant international organizations and research institutions and provide information and foreign-related policy recommendations to the CPC Central Committee, the State Council and relevant government departments.
     7. Undertake other missions entrusted by the State Council.
     DRC is one of the leading policy research and consulting institutions noted domestically and internationally. DRC has a team of prominent economists and qualified experts and researchers in the fields of macroeconomic policy, development strategy and regional economic policy, industrial economy and industrial policy, rural economy, technical economy, foreign economic relations, social development, market circulation, enterprise reform and development, finance as well as international economy.
     Since its establishment in 1981, DRC has done a great deal of creative work in promoting the reform and openness of China. DRC has been actively involved in the policy-making processes of the central government such as the formulation of the state five-year plans for the national economic and social development and the long-term development programs as well as the research and policy-making processes on the major reform and opening-up policies in different stages. It has also participated in and sponsored many major national research projects and study of the strategies and planning in the regional development.
     Over the years, DRC has established extensive contacts with many foreign government institutions, academic and business communities as well as international organizations and has conducted various forms of bilateral and multilateral international exchanges and cooperation. DRC has undertaken a number of major research projects sponsored by the international organizations and foreign institutions and many constructive results have been achieved. A series of high-level international conferences, such as “China and the World in the Nineties” and “China Development Forum” sponsored and organized by DRC have been highly appraised by the Chinese government leaders and senior personalities from political, academic and business circles from both home and abroad. These external exchanges and cooperation aim at drawing on useful international experiences to advance China’s reform, development and opening to the outside world as well as helping the world to understand China, so as to promote the world peace and development and the common prosperity of China and the rest of the world.