Ongoing education, learning at heart of success

Group study

The group study sessions serve as opportunities for members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee to obtain new knowledge, analyses and policy recommendations on specific issues from leading domestic experts, but the function of these meetings goes far beyond just informing policymaking.

Speaking at a conference marking the 80th anniversary of the Party School of the CPC Central Committee on March 1, 2013, Xi said the CPC has got to where it is today through learning and that it will continue to go along this course in the future.

When explaining why the CPC has been able to lead China to success, Laurence Brahm, a senior international fellow at the Center for China and Globalization, a Beijing-based think tank, said the CPC came to power on the mandate that it was going to create a sense of equality and try to bring everyone together.

"To a great extent, the Western world doesn't really understand the China model, but that is the mandate that's being carried through today and that still captures the hopes and aspirations of the Chinese people, and that's why the CPC is strong in its political position," he said.

"We have to understand in the context of 100 years, why the CPC is able to not only maintain its momentum but in many ways today to have even greater momentum than ever before."

Stephen Ndegwa, a communication expert and international affairs columnist in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, said no one can argue with the fact that the CPC embodies extraordinary virtues that have undoubtedly resulted in the reality of the "Chinese Dream".

China acknowledges the fact that the CPC model is not a one-size-fits-all model of governance and, unlike the proponents of Western democracy, does not coerce other countries or even partners to adopt the system, he said.