More than 1,200 representatives of China's 650 million women will discuss women's progress over the last five years at the Tenth National Women's Congress from October 28 to 31.

In September 2004, the Fourth Plenary Session of the 16th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee stressed the training and selection of women cadres.

The Law on the Protection of Rights and Interests of Women, which was amended in 2005, stipulated that "gender equality is a basic national policy".

Last year, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council ordered an end to sex discrimination and demanded better education on laws and regulations on women and children's rights during family planning work.

More than 40,000 organizations, including domestic violence shelters, have been set up to provide legal aid for women and children in the past five years, while 25 provinces have enacted regulations to prevent violence against women.

Training centers and organizations have been established to provide services for migrant women workers.

Women account for 45.4 percent of China's total employed population and for more than 40 percent of all public servants.

Female deputies comprise 21.33 percent of the National People's Congress (NPC), up 1.09 percentage points from the previous congress, and women make up 17.7 percent of the National Committee of the 11th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), up 1 percentage point.

The education gap between men and women has narrowed as the proportion of women with master degrees or doctorates has increased rapidly.

China's maternal mortality rate has reduced to 36.6 per 100,000 from 51.3 per 100,000 in 2003, and the infant mortality rate has dropped to 1.53 percent from 2.55 percent in 2003.

(Xinhua News Agency October 28, 2008)