The central government announced on Friday it will unify the pension insurance system for rural and urban residents, which experts called a significant move toward promoting equality among citizens.

The central government decided to merge the set pension program for rural residents with the one for unemployed urbanites, according to the State Council's executive meeting presided over by Premier Li Keqiang.

Currently, there are separate pension programs for urban employees and civil servants in China.

The meeting also concluded that the pensions will be funded jointly by individuals' contributions, government subsidies and sponsors of collective units, including the community committee.

The meeting articulated that local governments should reduce or exempt personal contributions for the disabled and encourage charitable organizations to sponsor underprivileged groups to participate in the program.

A social security card will be promoted nationwide, and the government will oversee its management to serve both rural and urban residents, according to the meeting.

Lin Kanghai, 29, a migrant worker from Wenzhou, Zhejiang province, said he found the current arrangement is not feasible for migrant workers.

"I tried to join the new rural endowment insurance system last year but failed. The village committee can help us to go through the procedures but only once a year," he said.

Lyu Xuejing, a social security expert at Capital University of Economics and Business, welcomed the government's decision and called the move "significant progress" in the nation's social welfare system.

"It is a vital step to reform the currently scattered pension system, but the government should also work harder to increase financial investments to make sure every retiree has a pension sufficient to support them in their old age," she said.

As the annual "two sessions" of top legislators and political advisers approaches, Friday's meeting stressed that all governmental departments should take proposals seriously. The two sessions - the National People's Congress and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference - will open in March.

Government officials should conduct research on the issues raised by deputies and members of the CPPCC and respond to their concerns in a timely fashion, concluded the meeting.

The State Council handled about 11,000 proposals raised at last year's two sessions, according to statistics released on Friday.

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(China Daily 02/08/2014 page2)