China will accelerate the setting up of a modern fiscal and tax system to help safeguard fiscal support for the country"s major strategic tasks and improve the well-being of the people, in a bid to bolster high-quality development, Finance Minister Liu Kun said in a published article on Thursday.

In an article in the Economic Daily, the minister said key measures being planned include safeguarding more expenditure for various undertakings in improving people"s well-being, and optimizing the tax collection management system in the country.

China"s tax income-to-GDP ratio declined to 15.2 percent last year from 17.5 percent in 2016, which indicated a relatively lower level of macro tax burden compared with other countries. The general tax level should remain stable to consolidate support for economic development, he said.

Promoting sustainable and deepened fiscal and tax reforms has already been identified as a key priority in China"s 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25) to ensure and enhance high-quality development.