Global experts look forward to the two sessions

The upcoming two sessions are raising expectations of being an important moment in China's development process and governance pattern, and they will create a new foundation on which the nation can grow further, global experts said.

The term "two sessions" refers to the annual meetings of the National People's Congress and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. This year's sessions will convene in later this week.

Karori Singh, former director and emeritus fellow of the South Asia Studies Centre at India's University of Rajasthan, said the two sessions reflect the regular participation of and consultation with the people from the local to national levels as an operational part of the people's democracy.

Singh said this year's two sessions will be a milestone in the Chinese development process and governance pattern for several reasons. For instance, China has already realized its first centenary goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, and the two sessions come as China begins working toward realizing the second centenary goal of becoming a modern socialist country by the middle of this century, Singh said.

The nation has exhibited its resilience by guarding against the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, while some other countries are seriously affected and have been grappling with serious problems in economic recovery, social resilience and political stability.

The two sessions are likely to reaffirm China's advance toward the second centenary goal in the interest of the people; express satisfaction for sustaining economic growth, social resilience and political cohesion; and reaffirm multilateralism by emphasizing collective efforts for global economic recovery and a common future for humankind, Singh said.

Sourabh Gupta, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Institute for China-America Studies, said he expects the two sessions to discuss issues concerning how to stabilize China's public health situation and how to make plans for the next 12 months.

Gupta said most governments in the world have launched fiscal stimulus programs to stir economic recovery from the effects of the pandemic. China wants to transition to a more service-oriented and more consumer-oriented economy, but right now its economic recovery still needs a degree of fiscal support from the government. In consequence, an important topic at the two sessions will be how to balance these two aspects.

Mustafa Hyder Sayed, executive director of the Pakistan-China Institute, said China's two sessions are significant in maintaining the country's healthy economic growth. Moreover, China's dynamic policy of zero-tolerance for COVID-19 has given the country a sense of normality, at a time when many other countries are in a state of chaos.

In this year's two sessions, expected legislation on noise pollution, wetlands protection and organized crime are crucial and show China's advances in maintaining harmony, political stability and people at the center of development.

Dicky Budiman, an epidemiologist at Griffith University in Australia, said sports and health are an essential part of China's two sessions, and he has seen a more confident China, which has won the hearts and minds of its people.

In addition, the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics effectively sent a message to the domestic and international community about China's success in conducting the Games while also showing it to be a powerful country in sports, Budiman said.

Dennis Munene, executive director of the China-Africa Center at the Africa Policy Institute in Nairobi, Kenya, said that the upcoming two sessions are a true reflection of China's commitment to democracy, and the two sessions will play an integral role in setting the agenda for the second centenary goal of building a modern socialist country by the middle of this century.

Hosuk Lee-Makiyama, director of the Brussels-based European Center for International Political Economy, said the two sessions could seize the extraordinary moment in which China is now the only world power with real political capital to seek trade liberalization.

He was referring to China's participation in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which took effect this year, and China's application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Erbiao Dai, vice-president of the Asian Growth Research Institute in Fukuoka, Japan, said the upcoming two sessions will take on special significance this year as they coincide with China's 20th CPC National Congress.

"I expect a slew of motions have been put forward to protect the rights and interests of women," Dai said.

Wang Xu in Tokyo, Liu Hongjie and Chen Yingqun in Beijing contributed to this story.