The 33rd Annual Conference of the Chinese Society of Political Economy Successfully Held
On May 13–14, 2023, the 33rd Annual Academic Conference of the China Association of Political Economy was successfully held at the beautiful Longzihu Campus of Henan University in Zhengzhou.
This academic seminar brought together numerous leading masters, renowned scholars, and young students from the national Marxist economics community. Centered on the conference theme, "Chinese-path Modernization and Theoretical Innovation in Political Economy," the event featured plenary reports, sub-topic presentations, and open floor discussions, facilitating thorough face-to-face exchange and heated debate. This large-scale national academic conference demonstrated the brand-new outlook of Chinese Marxist economists—their conscious dedication to serving the central work of the Party and the state, their active exploration and answering of "the questions of China, the world, the people, and the times" [1], and their high-spirited, pioneering spirit.
I. Conducting in-depth research on the theoretical and practical issues of Chinese-path modernization to assist in the construction of a great modern socialist country. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out in the report to the 20th CPC National Congress that we must "advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts through a Chinese path to modernization" and "build China into a great modern socialist country that leads the world in terms of composite national strength and international influence by the middle of this century." To this end, the theme of this annual conference was established as "Chinese-path Modernization and Theoretical Innovation in Political Economy," and the first stage of the main forum was also dedicated to this theme. The conference featured eight sub-forums, the first of which was titled "Research on the Theory and Practice of Chinese-path Modernization." Under this sub-forum, three specific topics were organized: "Political Economic Research on Chinese-path Modernization," "Comparative Research on Capitalist Modernization and Socialist Modernization," and "The Communist Party of China and Chinese-path Modernization."
II. Fully exchanging theoretical frontiers and academic dynamics in political economy to advance the disciplinary construction of Marxist political economy. Political economy is both an important second-tier discipline within the first-tier discipline of theoretical economics [2] and one of the three constituent parts of Marxist theory. Engels believed that the "entire theory" of a proletarian party "comes from the study of political economy." Lenin regarded political economy as the "most profound, comprehensive, and detailed proof and application" of Marxist theory. Comrade Mao Zedong took the lead on many occasions in studying Das Kapital and the Soviet Union's Textbook of Political Economy, emphasizing that leading Party cadres must master political economy. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the need to "study and make good use of political economy," leading collective study sessions on Marxist political economy. He has pointed out that "Marxist political economy is an important component of Marxism and a required course for us to uphold and develop Marxism," and that "while there are all kinds of economic theories, the foundation of our political economy can only be Marxist political economy and no other economic theory." Consequently, to promote the disciplinary construction of political economy, the themes of all eight sub-forums in this annual conference were related to this goal.
For example, Sub-forum IV was titled "Research on the Basic Theory of Marxist Political Economy," with topics including "Research on the Methodology of Marxist Economics," "Research on the Theory of Labor Value and Surplus Value under Digital Economy Conditions," as well as "Schools of American Marxist Economics," "Marx's Thought on Ecological Consumption," and "The Productivity of Service Labor."
Sub-forum III was titled "Research on the Political Economy of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics," featuring topics such as "Research on the Methodology of the Political Economy of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics," "Research on the Nature of Capital under the Conditions of a Socialist Market Economy," and "Applied Research of Marxist Economics in China."
Sub-forum II was titled "Research on Xi Jinping Economic Thought," with topics covering "Research on Common Prosperity," "Research on the Development of State Capital and State-owned Enterprises," "Research on Rural Revitalization," as well as "Research on Constructing a High-level Socialist Market Economy System" and "Research on High-quality Development."
Furthermore, to strengthen the study of contemporary capitalism, a forum titled "New Developments in Contemporary Capitalism and Theoretical Innovation in Marxist Economics" was established. To promote the modernization of analytical tools in political economy, the seventh sub-forum was titled "Mathematical Analysis in Political Economy." To advance the comparative study of Marxist economics and Western economics, the first stage of the closing ceremony was dedicated to "Comparative Research between Marxist Economics and Western Economics."
III. To promote the development of applied economics based on Marxist economic theory, Sub-forum V was specifically established as "Research on Applied Economics Based on Marxist Economic Theory." Topics included "Research on Marxist International Economics," "Research on Marxist Finance," as well as Marxist industrial economics, technological economics, and consumer economics.
IV. To promote the development of schools of Marxist economics, Sub-forum VIII was established as "Theories and Policy Innovations of the Shanghai School of Economics" [3] to facilitate innovative development and policy application of Marxist economics.
V. To promote the "upholding of fundamentals and breaking of new ground" in academic style and conference atmosphere, the presentations at both the main and sub-forums were strictly targeted toward the established sub-themes. This seminar featured eight major themes and nineteen sub-topics. The agenda was arranged by selecting speakers based on the conference topics, and speakers focused their remarks on those specific areas. In terms of scheduling, ample time was reserved for each sub-topic for free discussion and Q&A. This fostered active interaction not only between speakers and the audience but also among speakers working on the same theme, achieving excellent academic results. Additionally, current conference protocols listed speakers only by their institutions without titles or ranks, selecting them based solely on the theme and the quality of their submitted papers. This allowed some young scholars and researchers from non-prestigious institutions to present at the main forum.
VI. To advance Marxist economic research and academic platform construction, a "Seminar on Academic Writing and Journal Construction" was established. Chief editors, editorial directors, and academic editors from 16 domestic and international journals—including Studies on Political Economy, World Review of Political Economy, Contemporary Economic Research, Economic Review, Economist, Shanghai Journal of Economics, Shanghai School of Economics, Journal of Hebei University of Economics and Business, Journal of Management, Political Economy Quarterly, Social Sciences in China, International Critical Thought, Shandong Social Sciences, Fujian Tribune, Social Science Front, and the People's Daily's National Governance—engaged in full discussion with participants. This was warmly received by the scholars, especially the younger generation.
Furthermore, the conference saw the release of a new book, Innovation and Development of Marxist Political Economy (Volume I).
It is reported that this 33rd Annual Academic Conference was hosted by the China Association of Political Economy and Henan University, organized by the School of Economics and the School of Marxism at Henan University and the Center for Marxist Economic and Social Development at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and co-organized by the Central China Development Institute of Henan University and the editorial departments of Studies on Political Economy, World Review of Political Economy, and Shanghai School of Economics.
According to statistics, over 260 researchers, university faculty, academic editors, and graduate students from more than 100 research institutions, universities, and journals attended the conference. Participating institutions included the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the University of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Peking University, Tsinghua University, Renmin University of China, Nankai University, Fudan University, Wuhan University, Xiamen University, Sichuan University, Zhejiang University, Jilin University, Shandong University, Nanjing University, Lanzhou University, Sun Yat-sen University, Henan University, Zhengzhou University, Fuzhou University, Southwest University, Liaoning University, Anhui University, Guangxi University, Central University of Finance and Economics, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, Jilin University of Finance and Economics, Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, Nanjing University of Finance and Economics, Shandong University of Finance and Economics, Lanzhou University of Finance and Economics, Henan University of Economics and Law, Inner Mongolia University of Finance and Economics, Anhui University of Finance and Economics, Guizhou University of Finance and Economics, University of International Business and Economics, Capital University of Economics and Business, Shanghai University of International Business and Economics, Hebei University of Economics and Business, Shanghai Lixin University of Accounting and Finance, Henan University of Animal Husbandry and Economy, Beijing Normal University, Central China Normal University, Northeast Normal University, Shaanxi Normal University, Capital Normal University, Tianjin Normal University, Fujian Normal University, Inner Mongolia Normal University, Sichuan Normal University, Henan Normal University, Anhui Normal University, Huaibei Normal University, Shangqiu Normal University, China University of Political Science and Law, Beijing Institute of Technology, Tongji University, Northwest University, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Shanghai University, Donghua University, University of Jinan, Qingdao University, Yangzhou University, Xidian University, Wuhan Institute of Technology, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, Shanghai Maritime University, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Henan University of Technology, Henan University of Light Industry, Zhengzhou University of Aeronautics, Zhengzhou University of Technology, Henan Institute of Engineering, Guilin University of Electronic Technology, Guangzhou Maritime University, Kunming University, Huanghe Science and Technology University, China Agricultural University, Henan Agricultural University, Shanghai International Studies University, Beijing International Studies University, Zhejiang International Studies University, Civil Aviation University of China, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, China Youth University of Political Studies, Beijing Institute of Socialism, Sanming University, Xinxiang University, Wenzhou University, the Central Party School, Guangdong Provincial Party School, the Wushan County Party School of Chongqing, the Development Research Center of the State Council, the Jilin Academy of Social Sciences, the Liaoning Academy of Social Sciences, the Jiangxi Academy of Social Sciences, and the Fujian Academy of Social Sciences.
The China Association of Political Economy (CAPE) is a national first-tier academic society supervised by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and officially registered with the Ministry of Civil Affairs of the People's Republic of China. It is dedicated to theoretical research and academic exchange in political economy. The association’s secretariat is permanently located at the Institute of Marxism Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The official journal of the association is Studies on Political Economy. Since its establishment, the association has successfully held 33 annual conferences, making significant contributions to the innovative development of Marxist political economy.
(Reported by Chen Qiujie, Master’s Student, School of Marxism, University of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences)