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The first session of China's top political advisory body opened in Beijing on Sunday afternoon .
The 12th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, known as CPPCC, draws about 2,200 attendees from across the country.
Jia Qinglin, Chairman of the 11th CPPCC National Committee, delivered a report on the work of the CPPCC National Committee's Standing Committee over the past five years.
He said China had overcome severe challenges and made extraordinary achievements in reform, opening up and socialist modernization over the period.
He said the CPPCC fully played its role in coordinating relations, pooling strengths, making suggestions and proposals to the central leadership, and serving the overall interests of the country.
He said the CPPCC had made important contributions to the country's development in various fields such as scientific development, social stability, China's reunification and foreign exchanges.
Founded in 1949, the CPPCC consists of elite figures of the Chinese society who are willing to serve the think tank for the government and for the country's legislative and judicial organs.
According to a spokesman for the CPPCC session, more than 60 percent of the members of China's new top political advisory body were non-Communist Party members.
Earlier, our correspondent Li Xinying reported from the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, with more on the makeup of the new CPPCC National Committee and what the political advisors are tasked with during the sessions.
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STANDUP (ENGLISH) LI XINYING, CNC correspondent:
"The 12th CPPCC National Committee has a total of 2,237 members. The political advisors come from different sectors, including those from non-Communist parties and religious circle, as well as personages from Hong Kong and Macao. Some of the members are leading figures in the fields of economy, science, culture and education.
This year, nearly half of the CPPCC National Committee members are new faces. And nearly 18 percent of them are female, higher than that of the previous committee.
The CPPCC is mainly tasked with conducting political consultation, exercising democratic supervision and participating in the discussion and the handling of state affairs.
Over the past five years, the CPPCC National Committee's members have put forward nearly 30,000 proposals.
A CPPCC official responsible for handling the proposals said they have been helpful in improving policies, laws and regulations.
Some of these proposals have been incorporated into government policies, such as those involving reducing vehicle exhaust, improving conservation of grassland and the rural environment.
Some suggestions have played a major role in improving people's livelihood and social progress, including those on the reform of public hospitals and the highway toll-free policy during major holidays.
This year, as of Saturday afternoon, the national political advisors had already handed in nearly 1,100 proposals. Many of them focus on environmental protection, urbanization, medical system reform and education."
