China is entering a "new stage and mission" in its efforts to control the spread of COVID-19, the most senior official overseeing the country's pandemic response said on Wednesday.

Why it matters: Chinese Vice Premier Sun Chunlan's remarks indicate that authorities are preparing to at least partially change their approach to COVID.

The big picture: Waves of protests against "zero-COVID measures" rocked more than a dozen Chinese cities over the past week, with an outpouring of public anger and frustration not seen since the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989.

• While many protesters called for the elimination of PCR and health codes, some demanded President Xi Jinping's resignation.

What they're saying: "With the decreasing toxicity of the Omicron variant, the increasing vaccination rate and the accumulating experience of outbreak control and prevention, China’s pandemic containment faces new stage and mission," Sun said during a meeting with the National Health Commission, CNN reported, citing Chinese state news agency Xinhua.

• Sun made no mention of the government's controversial zero-COVID policies and said that local governments should "respond to and resolve the reasonable demands of the masses" in a timely manner.

Driving the news: Lockdowns were lifted on Wednesday in about half of the districts in Guangzhou, a major manufacturing city, and authorities announced an end to mass PCR testing, the Guardian reported.

• State media reported Thursday that 24 districts of Shanghai designated "high risk" were released from lockdown measures.
• Chinese state media has started to emphasize the decreased severity of the Omicron variant in recent days, despite the high number of COVID cases.

State of play: A number of major cities — including Guangzhou, Shijiazhuang and Chengdu — have announced an easing of some testing requirements and movement restrictions this week, AP reported.

• In some places, this has meant a reopening of markets and a resumption of bus service.
• A local newspaper reported that some residents with COVID in Beijing are now being allowed to isolate at home, avoiding crowded quarantine centers, per AP.

By the numbers: As of late November, about 412 million people, or nearly one-third of China's population, were affected by lockdown measures, according to estimates by the investment bank Nomura.

• China recorded more than 36,000 COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, among the highest numbers since the pandemic began in 2020.

Flashback: Beijing had already eased some pandemic measures before protests erupted nationwide in the weeks after Xi secured a third term as China's top leader in October.

• The government cut quarantine periods for some high-risk groups, including travelers and close contacts of people infected with COVID, and scrapped penalties for airlines that carried passengers who tested positive for the virus upon arrival.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.