Women's federations at all levels should better protect the legitimate rights and interests of women and children, a senior legislator said in Beijing on Tuesday.

All women's federations should study the new difficulties and needs of China's women and children and provide practical solutions for them, said Wang Zhaoguo, vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the country's top legislature.

The federations should mobilize women to contribute more to national economic and social development, Wang told a meeting of the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF).

The ACWF's vice-chairwoman, Huang Qingyi, reviewed the federation's work in the past year as she delivered a report at the meeting.

Federations had helped more than 3.1 million rural women find jobs in non-agricultural industries in the past year and created more than 500,000 new jobs for laid-off urban workers, Huang said.

She noted that they had also enhanced research into the plight of the country's 20 million "left behind" children and launched a foundation for their benefit. These children are those who have been left behind in the countryside as their parents -- migrant workers -- travel to cities in hope of finding better jobs.

President of the ACWF, Gu Xiulian asked local women's federations to prepare for the 10th National Women's Congress of China, scheduled for next year.

The ACWF, established in 1949, is the largest women's organization in the country. It holds a national congress every five years.

(Xinhua News Agency December 12, 2007)