The 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) is set to open on October 16. A total of 2,296 delegates are expected to attend. The Congress will map the road ahead for the next five years and choose a new Central Committee. Chinese president and Party General Secretary Xi Jinping is expected to assume a third term at the head of the Party and be re-elected President of the People's Republic of China at next year's National People's Congress (NPC) meeting in March. Premier Li Keqiang is expected to step down and analysts are speculating who will replace him.
The 19th Central Committee started its 7th plenary session on October 9 to make final preparations for the Congress. The meeting also approved the work report that Xi Jinping will deliver at the opening session of the Congress and a proposal to amend the Party's constitution. The Party convenes a congress every five years and this year’s 20th will see changes at the top, with many incumbents set for retirement. The Congress comes as China is facing a complex external environment including intensifying rivalry with the United States, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as rising tensions in the Taiwan Strait. Domestically, the government is grappling with a sharp downturn in economic growth partially affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and facing concerns over continued adherence to its strict zero-Covid policy. In an article in the party journal Qiushi, Xi called on the party to focus on its “historical mission” and prepare for “great struggles” ahead, the South China Morning Post reports.
The China Daily commented that “amid the increasingly complex risks and challenges China is facing, the upcoming 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China will have the central task of presenting the Party’s roadmap for the next five years and beyond, a key period in realizing national rejuvenation.” Speaking at a workshop attended by senior Party and government officials in July, Xi Jinping said the 20th CPC National Congress would emphasize the strategic tasks the Party will have and the major steps it will take over the next five years, which hold the key to the country’s modernization drive. An effort must be made to work out new plans and measures to tackle the problem of unbalanced and inadequate development nationwide, Xi said.
Xi underlined the need for the whole Party to strengthen risk awareness, prepare for the worst-case scenario, and strive to cope with the changing domestic and international situation with proper strategies. Maintaining national security while continuing to promote development will be a central theme in the next five years. The CPC is expected to renew its call at the Congress for countries to implement the China-proposed Global Development Initiative and Global Security Initiative to promote global peace and development as part of an effort to advance the building of “a community with a shared future for mankind”. The two initiatives have been widely regarded as China’s solutions to addressing the problems the world faces in the cause of peace and development. Since its inception, the Global Development Initiative has been positioned as an all-inclusive accelerant to the United Nations’ agenda on sustainable development.
