Published by ChinaMNC · Dongbao

China’s Cultural Policy Push: What Foreign Founders Should Watch

A practical briefing for foreign founders on China’s culture-sector priorities under Xi Jinping’s cultural thought, drawn from official reporting on plans, heritage protection, public services and culture-industry integration.

Why cultural policy matters to foreign founders

China’s official account of cultural development under Xi Jinping’s cultural thought describes a policy direction that reaches well beyond museums and the arts. For foreign founders building or registering a company in China, the article signals where official attention, planning and public resources are being directed — and which sectors may see stronger institutional support.

The source frames Xi Jinping’s cultural thought as a theoretical summary of the Party’s cultural work and a guide for promoting cultural prosperity and building a “socialist cultural power.” It says the 15th Five-Year Plan period has begun with visible cultural activity and steady progress toward that goal.

Planning signals: culture inside the 15th Five-Year Plan

The article says the strategic task of “stimulating the innovative and creative vitality of the whole nation’s culture and prospering and developing socialist culture” has been written into the 15th Five-Year Plan outline. It also states that “prospering internet-based new popular literature and art” was included in the same outline.

For founders, this is a planning signal rather than a market forecast. It indicates that cultural production, cultural services and culture-related consumption sit within the official development framework, which can matter when assessing local policy environments, public-sector partners and publicly supported initiatives.

Official publications and theoretical work

The source notes the publication of the first and second volumes of Selected Cultural Works of Xi Jinping, displayed at the Beijing Books Building on Chang’an Avenue. It also lists other publications issued this year, including excerpts on establishing a correct view of political performance, selected Party-building works, and the first volume of a Chinese and English edition of a record of governance in the new era.

The article says Party members and officials are expected to read original texts and apply what they learn in practical work. It also cites Xi’s instruction on high-quality development of philosophy and social sciences, including accelerating the construction of an independent knowledge system with Chinese characteristics.

Heritage protection: a clearer compliance and project environment

One of the most concrete sections concerns cultural heritage. The article says the General Offices of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council issued the 15th Five-Year Plan for the Protection and Inheritance of Cultural Heritage, described as a roadmap and task list for high-quality development over the next five years.

It also reports that provincial-level acceptance of the fourth national cultural relics census has been fully completed, that a special campaign on safety management of cultural relics in state-owned museums is under way, that work on protected and utilized areas of revolutionary cultural relics has produced new results, and that the system of facilities for experiencing intangible cultural heritage is gradually being improved.

• Heritage status: The article says “Jingdezhen handmade porcelain industry remains” passed review at the 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in Busan, South Korea, on 25 July 2026, becoming China’s 61st World Heritage site.
• Official guidance: It recalls Xi’s visit to Jingdezhen three years earlier, where he called ceramics a Chinese treasure and an important calling card of Chinese civilization, and urged that the “millennium porcelain capital” brand be polished further.
• Visitor demand: The article states that revolutionary sites and memorial venues across the country receive 600 million visits each year.
• Urban heritage districts: It cites Beijing’s Longfusi, Suzhou’s Pingjiang Road and Fuzhou’s Sanfang Qixiang as examples where people enjoy intangible heritage, buy cultural creative products and visit time-honored Chinese brands.

For founders in cultural tourism, design, consumer goods or venue operations, these points suggest that heritage-related projects may involve multiple layers of official planning and approval. The article does not provide licensing rules or investment guarantees; it describes official priorities and activities.

Public cultural services and creative industries

The source lists 3,253 public libraries, 7,188 museums and nearly 44,000 mass cultural institutions as providers of public cultural services. It mentions film and television works, a lively cultural tourism market and popular local sports events as examples of cultural supply.

It also refers to the seventh National Ethnic Minority Art Performance, held in Beijing from 18 August to 23 September, with 48 outstanding productions — a record number — and about 180,000 online and offline attendees.

Policy measures cited include a work plan for “art empowering beautiful villages” for 2025–2027 and a three-year drama revitalization action plan for 2026–2028. The article also notes that a delivery rider poet and a grassroots writer received mainstream literary awards, which it presents as evidence of a changing cultural ecosystem.

Culture, commerce, tourism and sport

The article says that before the Spring Festival, during an inspection in Beijing, Xi stressed actively developing modern service industries, using rich cultural resources, and promoting integrated development of culture, commerce, tourism, sport and exhibitions.

It reports that 14,900 intangible cultural heritage workshops have driven employment and income growth for more than 1.3 million people in related industries. It also mentions a State Council opinion on promoting high-quality development of historical classic industries, which proposes building several characteristic industrial clusters at the 100-billion-yuan scale.

The article describes culture as an important fulcrum for high-quality development, stimulating domestic demand, consumption and confidence. Those are official characterizations, not independently verified forecasts.

International cultural exchange

The source cites archaeological cooperation: confirmation of twin sacred lakes at the Montu Temple site in Egypt, promotion of China’s experience in protecting large archaeological sites at the Ben Arous forest site in Tunisia, and the Honghe site in Kyrgyzstan as evidence of Silk Road exchange.

It quotes Xi’s formulation that civilization exchange should transcend estrangement, mutual learning should transcend conflict, and coexistence should transcend superiority. For foreign founders, this framing may be relevant to cultural exchange projects, exhibitions and heritage-related partnerships, though the article sets out no specific market-access rules.

Practical takeaways for founders

• Read planning documents: Culture appears in the 15th Five-Year Plan outline and in dedicated heritage plans, so sector-specific implementation documents may follow.
• Expect public-sector involvement: Museums, libraries, heritage sites and mass cultural institutions are described as core public service providers, suggesting official bodies will remain central partners or approvers in many projects.
• Watch local initiatives: The article cites local theory-learning and outreach activities in Zibo, Chongqing and elsewhere, indicating that local governments can run their own cultural programmes.
• Do not treat the article as regulation: It reports official activity and direction, not company registration procedures, tax treatment or licensing requirements.

This summary is based on information published by the relevant Chinese government website and is general information, not legal or tax advice.