Experts Reminded of Central Mission at Summer Retreat

Executive Summary:

• This August, 62 experts from the fields of science and technology, philosophy and social sciences, and basic research were invited to take a vacation and meet with senior officials in Beidaihe as part of an annual tradition that dates back to at least 2001.
• Cultivating talents in strategic sectors is seen as essential to achieving the Party’s ambitions of becoming the world’s preeminent power. Many appear to have bought in to the mission. One of this years attendees talks of an “AI competition to seize the commanding heights of future development” and building a group of “strategic scientists.”
• Every year, the meetings are attended by the head of the Organization Department, along with at least one other senior official. This department is the central body responsible for personnel matters, and is involved in talent-related work. Prior to Xi’s third term, the vice premier also attended the meetings.
• As the only annual meeting in Beidaihe to receive coverage in official media, this gathering of experts remains a useful window onto the Party’s strategic priorities, even if the high political drama of late twentieth century Beidaihe is largely absent.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) cares deeply about talent and experts. This has not always been the case, but as the Party has taken seriously its desire to become the world’s preeminent power, the importance of those who excel in specific fields of endeavor has risen.

When, on August 3, Politburo Standing Committee member and secretary of the CCP’s Secretariat Cai Qi (蔡奇) visited some of the nation’s top talents at the coastal resort of Beidaihe, he was engaging in an annual tradition to honor these individuals, express gratitude for their work, and—most importantly—learn from their expertise (Xinhua, August 3). The coverage of this meeting is the only official acknowledgement that cadres from the highest echelons of the Party decamp in the summer to Beidaihe, a place of waning, but historical, significance for the Party. In the Xi era, but for the interruption of the pandemic in 2020–2022, the meeting has taken place on an annual basis in the first or second week of August.

This tradition, which is always referred to as “an important institutional arrangement” (一项重要制度性安排) of the Party and the nation, dates back to roughly the beginning of the 21st century. That year, the Party raised issue of talent to the “level of national strategy” (国家战略层面), and talent work has become a more common focus of the its work ever since (The Paper, August 6, 2015). In 2017, in his report to the 19th Party Congress, Xi called for “upholding the principle of the Party managing talent work” (坚持党管人才原则) (Guangming Daily, April 16, 2018). Finally, in 2021, this principle was enshrined in the 2021 “Regulations on the Organization Work of the CCP” (中国共产党组织工作条例) (Qiushi, October 1, 2021).

Organization Department Head Among Official Attendees

Typically, the readouts from these meetings start out by noting that a senior official has been “entrusted by General Secretary Xi Jinping” (受习近平总书记委托) to visit the experts and talents (专家人才) on behalf of the Party Center and the State Council. The bottom of the readout lists other official attendees. Since at least 2013 (Xi Jinping’s first year in charge), these have included the head of the organization department (Zhao Leji (赵乐际), Chen Xi (陈希), Li Ganjie (李干杰), and Shi Taifeng (石泰峰)). The organization’s primary role, as one of the Central Committee’s functional departments, is to oversee personnel and staffing matters within the Party. Its remit also extends beyond the Party, however, to include other groups seen as significant to its overall strategic direction. This includes experts.

A third official is usually present too. For the last three summers, this has been Shen Yiqin (谌贻琴). One of the few female members of the central committee, Shen is also the state councilor in charge of human resource affairs, social affairs, civil affairs, women and children affairs and ethnic affairs, and serves as the president of the All-China Women’s Federation. Previously, it was also common for a vice premier to attend. For instance, Ma Kai (马凯) participated from 2013–2017, in 2018 Hu Chunhua (胡春华) was there, and in 2019 Sun Chunlan (孙春兰)—another rare female figure at the top of the Party—took part. This is a tradition that predates Xi’s rise to power but one that he has jettisoned in his third term. In the Xi era, there has been one occasion in which a fourth official has taken part. That was in 2023, when Jiang Xinzhi (姜信治), vice chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) was present. His appearance makes sense: the CPPCC is involved in bringing together Party representatives and with those on the outside, including influential experts and professionals who are not Party members. What is not clear, however, is why an official of Jiang’s position was present in 2023 but not in other years.

Each year’s meetings take place under a specific theme (主题). This year’s was the rather generic “building for the new era” (建功新时代), and followed “patriotism and struggle” (爱国奋斗) in 2024, and, in 2023, “aiming for high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-improvement, engaging in the great practice of Chinese-style modernization” (矢志高水平科技自立自强，投身中国式现代化伟大实践) (Xinhua, August 8, 2023, August 3, 2024, August 3). In fact, the only time a theme was mentioned prior to 2023 was in 2012, which took place under the banner “everyone can become a talent” (人人皆可成才) (The Paper, August 6, 2015).

Beidaihe’s Waning Historical Significance

That year (2012) was the last time Xi Jinping appeared in official reporting on Beidaihe. He attended the meetings, as he had in 2010, in his capacity as vice premier. His connections to Beidaihe go back much further though, with some reports recalling his love of playing football (soccer) there as a child along with the children of other central committee cadres (Hunan Government, August 19, 2016).

Back then, Beidaihe was steadily becoming an important hub for high-level politicking. In 1952, for the first time, central organs were allowed one week in the summers to rest there. The following year, the Party officially implemented its “summer office system” (避暑和办公制度), whereby the leadership would head out east to the villas and sanatoria along the coast to carry on working away from the heat of the city. Several important decisions emerged during these stints. Most notably, in 1958, the leadership articulated the policies for what would become the disastrous Great Leap Forward, as well as ordering the bombardment of Kinmen, kicking off the Second Taiwan Straits Crisis (The Paper, August 6, 2015).

The “summer office system” was interrupted in the latter part of Mao’s rule, but was reinstituted by Deng Xiaoping in 1984. It was still in play when China Brief first covered it in 2001, reporting that 200-odd cadres attended (China Brief, July 24, 2001). But it was discontinued in 2003. That July, the People’s Daily Online released a message, saying that “the central government decided that the five leadership teams—the CCP Central Committee, the State Council, the NPC, the National Committee of the CPPCC, and the CMC—this summer will not go to Beidaihe” (中央决定，中共中央、国务院、全国人大、全国政协、中央军委五大领导班子今年夏季将不到北戴河办公) (Global People, August 26, 2012). This was likely a response to the SARS outbreak, but is something that has persisted ever since. According to reporting from Xi’s first summer in charge, “leaders do not always go to Beidaihe during the summer months, and the timing is not uniform” (如今的暑期，领导人并不一定都到北戴河，时间也不统一。新华社消息显示) (Xinjing News, August 12, 2013).

The practice of inviting experts first occurred in July 1987, when the leadership invited 14 experts and their families from the national science and technology sector to vacation in Beidaihe, where they met with Deng Xiaoping and others (The Paper, August 6, 2015). This began to be institutionalized in 1998, though most reporting only refers to these meetings dating back to 2001 (Xinhua, August 8, 2023).

Frontier Researchers and Model Workers Treated to a Work Holiday

Over the last 13 summers, more than 50 but never more than 62 experts have been invited to Beidaihe. It is not known what the precise rationale is behind the selection, but according to an account from 2015, the invitees are “recommended by 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, the relevant ministries and commissions of the Central Government and the General Political Department of the People’s Liberation Army (由31个省区市、中央有关部委和解放军总政治部推荐) (People’s Daily, August 11, 2015).

Their precise schedule is not reported. Part of their time is spent on holiday with their families, lounging by the sea or—in emulation of their leaders dating back to Mao Zedong—swimming in it. The rest of their time is spent in a series of meetings with high-level officials. These could include, as in 2016, a national conference on science and technology innovation (全国科技创新大会) and a symposium on philosophy and social science work (哲学社会科学工作座谈会) (Xinhua, August 5, 2016). A roundtable discussion also appears to be part of the proceedings, at least in some years (Xinhua, August 6, 2015). Around half of the readouts note that the experts shared their “opinions and suggestions” (意见建议). The phrase does not appear in this year’s coverage, but that is not to say that advice was not given or that it will not return in next year’s readout. Finally, according to the 2019 readout, every year the experts have some “compulsory exercise” (规定动作) in the form of a health lecture (健康知识讲座) (People’s Daily, August 8, 2019).

The makeup of the experts also varies year to year. Sometimes reporting includes just the fields of study that experts were drawn from. On other occasions, the names of their institutions are listed. On even rarer occasions, we learn the identities of a number of the individuals. One readout in the People’s Daily in 2015 gave a very specific breakdown. It noted that the invitees included 9 academicians, 3 female experts, 3 from democratic parties, 4 non-partisan experts, and 1 ethnic minority. Most were front-line young and middle-aged innovative talents, with an average age of 53.7 years old (the youngest was 37). Between them they had received 78 major awards (People’s Daily, August 11, 2015). Most years make sure to include experts in philosophy and the social sciences, but the vast majority work on cutting edge science and technology (see Table 1 above). These range from individuals who have led key national defense projects and aerospace technology, to those involved with fossil fuel extraction and oil and gas field development, to experts in materials science, quantum optics, and artificial intelligence.

This year’s attendees come from the fields of science and technology, philosophy and social sciences, and basic research. Some were profiled or interviewed by media, including The Paper and Xinhua. These include Qian Chengdan (钱乘旦), a professor at Peking University and expert on the rise and fall of great powers; Pan Jingwei (潘建伟), a leading quantum technology researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences; and Yan Ning (颜宁), president of the Shenzhen Academy of Medical Science (China News Weekly, August 9). One, Zhou Bowen (周伯文), who is the director and chief scientist of Shanghai Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, is quoted discussing the “AI competition.” He describes is as “a competition to seize the commanding heights of future development” (抢占未来发展制高点的竞争), one that has created “an urgent need to discover, select, and cultivate a group of strategic scientists through major organizational model innovation” (亟需通过重大组织模式创新，发现、选拔，并培育出一批战略科学家) (China News Weekly, August 9). As part of this year’s emphasis on younger talent, eight attendees were under 40 years old, with the youngest only 33.

Conclusion

As Cai Qi noted to the assembled experts, it is the Party’s job to ensure that “talents emerge in large numbers, people make the most of their talents, and that their talents are fully utilized (人才辈出、人尽其才、才尽其用) … “to make new and great contributions” (作出新的更大贡献) to the Party and the nation (Xinhua, August 3). As the Party doubles down on technical expertise in cutting edge fields, the roster of attendees at the Beidaihe retreat is populated by more and more AI researchers and those working in other emerging fields. Less attention is given to traditional model workers, such as the agricultural technicians valorized in the past. This is a trend that has been developing for almost the entire time the Party has been inviting experts to summer with its senior officials. Back in 2001, a high-level cadre grumbled that Jiang Zemin wanted to “take away the hammer and sickle from the Party flag—and put in their place a computer and satellite” (China Brief, July 24, 2001). While it is clear that the hammer and sickle are here to stay, the emphasis on technological salvation has only become more laser-focused in the years since.

Table 1: Xi Era Experts Hosted at Beidaihe

[a] The available information from 2016 does not list individual experts’ fields, but it does note that two meetings were held: the National Conference on Science and Technology Innovation and the Symposium on Philosophy and Social Science Work.

[b] An article in the People’s Daily says that the 2015 batch of experts were “recommended by 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, the relevant ministries and commissions of the Central Government and the General Political Department of the People’s Liberation Army” (由31个省区市、中央有关部委和解放军总政治部推荐). It goes on to provide a breakdown of the group, which included 9 academicians of both academies, 3 female experts, 3 democratic parties, 4 non-partisan, and 1 ethnic minority. Most of these were front-line young and middle-aged innovative talents, with an average age of 53.7 years old, 89.1 percent below 60 years old, and the youngest expert is 37 years old. Among them, are 78 major awards such as National Natural Science Award, National Science and Technology Progress Award, National Technology Invention Award, and the Ho Liang He Li Award (People’s Daily, August 11, 2015).

[c] Liu Yunshan referred to these experts as the “dream team” (梦之队) (People’s Daily, August 7, 2014)