China should pursue 'high-quality' urbanisation - top economic planning body

Construction workers work on the scaffolding of a new building in front of the Oriental Pearl TV Tower in an area where old residential buildings are being demolished to make room for new skyscrapers in Shanghai September 9, 2013. REUTERS//Aly Song

BEIJING (Reuters) - China must plan scientifically for "high-quality" urbanisation that is human-oriented and energy-saving, a senior official at the country's top economic planning agency said in remarks published on Thursday.

China's leaders have an ambitious plan to boost the urban population by 400 million over the next decade, a key plank in a reform effort to restructure the economy away from credit and export growth to one where consumers provide the main impetus.