An Address delivered at the Lagos Forum Think Tank & Media Dialogue and Two Sessions Briefing at the Chinese Consulate General, Lagos on March 14, 2025
China’s Two Sessions: Symbol of China’s participatory and peculiar democracy
In China’s political leadership, everything is just different from what you know and see all over the world.
It is China’s home-grown system that thrives on the country’s original master plan. You don’t need to be told that it really works and effectively too.
Since 1949, the system has worked without interruption. That lack of interruption where the policies of the ruling party, Communist Party of China (CPC) have flown without much antagonism is one of the strong points for China’s growth.
The ingenuity to create something original to itself and its system stands China out.
Whereas China borrowed socialism from the Soviet Union, it found a local niche, recipe, and meaning to it. While the Soviet model atrophied under unrealistic theories, China found an angle that fine-tuned socialism to the suitable Chinese formula – Socialism with Chinese Characteristics, what I choose to call Sinified Socialism.
It is this system of political and policy leadership that has created the wonders China is known for in every aspect of societal advancement since 1978.
Borrowing the words of the great leader who turned China around, Deng Xiaoping, the colour of the cat is immaterial so long as it catches mice. He said this in reference to China’s political and economic system. Whatever you call what China operates is not a major issue, but the results.
That originality of not being tied to the apron strings of some other person’s political ideology and practice propels China forward, creating envy from a people who feel and say that no system works apart from the one copied from them.
Many don’t know that China doesn’t practice a one-party political system but has 8 other parties outside the CPC.
All the 9 political parties of China attend the Two Sessions, a legislative meeting that boasts the largest legislature in the world, with each having a particular number of seats allocated to it. They also have their members appointed to government offices for across-board representation. In addition to the political party representation, minority ethnic groups have representatives at the CPPCC
The Two Sessions are actually a parliamentary meeting that takes place every first week of March where about 2,977 members of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and about 2100 members of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Congress (CPPCC) meet side-by-side to take a stock of the previous political and legislative year.
The NPC is China’s highest policymaking body or organ of government. It appoints or elects the president of China with a tenure of office, and also has the power to monitor and discipline every officer it elects.
The members of the Two Sessions are also elected by party members at the grassroots level from where they emerge and represent the country. The government, political parties, non-governmental agencies, interest groups, and professional bodies present bills and policy drafts to the Two Sessions that examine them for ratification and adoption.
At the sitting of the Two Sessions, the Chinese Premier stands before the gathering of thousands of lawmakers to read out the leadership achievements of the previous legislative year, and also announces policy guidelines for the current year.
In the 2016 Two Sessions sitting I reported the event from the Great Hall of the People where the late Premier Li Keqiang read out the achievements of the previous year, and announced a new policy of targeting to liberate the last 20 million very poor Chinese citizens from abject poverty. The following year, the Session announced that the target was achieved.
This political and legislative system that segments China’s development plans into 5-year sessions since 1953 is what has nurtured the country’s unprecedented growth of achieving 94% of the UN Millennium Development Goals global poverty reduction at the end of 2015. It has the record of the best and most effective poverty alleviation plan and implementation.
2025 Two Sessions
Like in the past, the Two Sessions this year had its landmarks of achievement and targets for the current year.
During the general sittings attended by even the president of China, a lot of media briefings at the ministerial levels are held where the press freely ask questions on government business.
In the 2016 Session I attended, I was a part of the briefing of the Chinese Foreign Minister, Mr. Wang Yi.
This year, on March 7, Wang addressed the world press and gave an impressive account of his office as a long-term, seasoned, top diplomat.
He gave 23 answers to 23 questions from 23 different media platforms that cut across the entire world. In those responses, he completely captured the policy focus, achievement, and thrust of the Chinese government.
China practices what I call a modular diplomatic system where it targets and engages every part of the world in line with its peculiarities.
For Africa, Wang who had visited the continent, touring four countries in early January, including Nigeria revealed what signifies that China’s diplomatic policy thrust is Africa lies in the creation of a better economy and elevation for the continent. He said that in the past three years, China created 1.1 million jobs in the continent through investment. He recounted that over the years, Chinese agencies have constructed over 100,000km of roads and 10,000km of railway and enhanced the well-being and image of the continent globally.
The chief diplomat gave responses on Chinese diplomatic focus of fostering global peace, development, and mutual respect; the continued need for globalisation to thrive.
He also addressed issues on the relationship of the country with:
Global South
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation
ASEAN
Relations with Asia
Relations with India
Relations with Japan
Relations with Russia
The Ukraine conundrum
Gaza imbroglio
Thorny relationship with the USA and the rivalry the US raises against it, the trade wars
Relations with Latin America
Relations with the European Union
The plan of hosting the International Women Conference in Beijing later this year
Chinese citizens diplomacy
Growth of the Chinese economy that targets 5% GDP advancement in 2025
The Artificial Intelligence rave
Relations with its 13 neighbouring countries
Relations with United Nations, etc.
Lessons
The major takeaway for me from the Sessions is the originality, tenacity and sense of purpose that it has not vitiated from since its commencement in the 1950s.
China has, through its unique and peculiar political system, given the world a choice to make outside the one-size-fits-all European and US democracy.
China has been a good example of how a people can develop a system that is indigenous to them or borrow from another system, adapt it to local realities, and get the best out of it to advance their own world.
At the end of this year and when next the Two Sessions sits in March 2026, I have no doubts that the old story of successes would still prevail.
Ikenna Emewu is
Publisher/Editor-in-Chief
Africa China Economy Magazine, Nigeria
Director of Research (Nigeria)
Institute of African Studies, Zhejiang Normal University, China
