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BEIJING, June 19-- China will spruce up old residential communities in cities at a faster pace, complete the upgrading of rural power grids ahead of schedule, and make greater progress in ensuring the access to safe drinking water in rural areas, as part of the efforts to meet people's aspirations and ensure and improve their livelihood. The decisions were made at the State Council's executive meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang on Wednesday. The Chinese government places high importance on the renovation of old urban residential areas. Premier Li Keqiang pointed out in this year's Government Work Report that old residential areas in cities, large in both number and area, need to be upgraded with greater efforts, including updating roads and water, power, gas and other facilities, supporting the installation of elevators and the development of barrier-free environment, and improving amenities like markets, convenience stores, pedestrian streets and parking lots. "The government must put market players at the center of its services to provide them with an enabling environment. Faced with slower investment growth, we need to get our focus right in keeping investment expansion steady. The focus should be major projects that can meet people's expectations, spur domestic demand and boost consumption, and run little risk of repetitive construction," Li said, "The demand for renovating old residential areas is huge. If work is done well in this field, it could be a significant driver of growth." | 
