The Second Session of the 11th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) began its closing ceremony Thursday morning, pledging efforts to help maintain steady and relatively fast economic development in 2009.

Jia Qinglin, chairman of the CPPCC National Committee, presided over the ceremony.

Top Communist Party of China (CPC) and state leaders Hu Jintao, Wu Bangguo, Wen Jiabao, Li Changchun, Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, He Guoqiang and Zhou Yongkang were present at the closing ceremony.

The meeting adopted the work report of the 11th CPPCC National Committee's Standing Committee over the past year, and the report on how suggestions and proposals from CPPCC members were handled since the last session.

By 2 p.m. on March 8, a total of 1,987 members of the 11th CPPCC National Committee had submitted 5,571 proposals on economic development, government building, democracy and the legal system, among others.

According to the report on the handling of proposals, political advisors attached great importance to issues related to people's wellbeing.

They raised 551 proposals on maintaining economic growth, calling for effort to boost economic restructuring and expand domestic demand under the backdrop of the global financial crisis.

Their proposals also include 603 on farmers and agricultural and rural development, 632 on employment, 301 on social security, 657 on education, 426 on medical services and health care, 146 on food safety, and 294 on promoting democracy and the rule of law, says the report.

The Committee for Handling Proposals of the CPPCC National Committee called two special meetings during the 10-day annual session, focusing on employment of returned migrant workers and stimulation of domestic demand for steady and relatively rapid economic growth.

Major officials from key government departments such as the National Development and Reform Commission joined in discussions about how to handle the proposals at the two meetings.

According to the report, the CPPCC National Committee will hold a meeting on March 24, when the proposals will be transferred to 168 governments departments and units for further handling.

The 11th CPPCC National Committee has 2,235 members, and 2,103 of them attended the closing meeting of the annual session that kicked off on March 3.

The CPPCC is a patriotic united front organization of the Chinese people, serving as a key mechanism for multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC), and a major manifestation of socialist democracy.

Members of the CPPCC are representatives of the CPC and non-Communist parties, personages without party affiliation, and representatives of people's organizations, ethnic minorities and various social strata.

The CPPCC also has the representation of compatriots of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, returned overseas Chinese, and specially invited people.

(Xinhua News Agency March 12, 2009)