Concluding the fourth sessions of China's 14th National People's Congress (NPC) and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC)—which opened earlier in March to deliberate key priorities—the NPC closed on March 12, 2026, in Beijing. Lawmakers approved the government work report, the outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030), and several laws, with Xi Jinping and other leaders in attendance.
The NPC's closing meeting took place at the Great Hall of the People, where resolutions were adopted on the government work report, the 15th Five-Year Plan outline for national economic and social development, the 2025 implementation plan and 2026 plan, central and local budgets for 2025-2026, and reports from the NPC Standing Committee, Supreme People's Court, and Supreme People's Procuratorate. Lawmakers also approved a decision on the NPC Standing Committee's law overhaul report. Zhao Leji delivered the closing speech.
Key laws passed include the Ecological and Environmental Code, the Ethnic Unity and Progress Promotion Law, and the National Development Planning Law.
The Ethnic Unity and Progress Promotion Law seeks to foster integration among China's 56 ethnic groups via education, housing, and community measures. It mandates Mandarin instruction from pre-kindergarten through high school, building on prior allowances for native-language curricula (e.g., Tibetan, Uyghur, Mongolian). Beijing frames this as enhancing job opportunities and national unity amid 'sinicization' efforts since the late 2000s, with Han Chinese over 90% of the 1.4 billion population. Critics, including BBC reports, contend it undermines minority rights; the law enables prosecution of parents for 'detrimental' views and promotes 'mutually embedded' communities, potentially disrupting minority areas.
The CPPCC session concluded on March 11, with Chairman Wang Huning noting fruitful results and calling for contributions to Chinese modernization and the 15th Five-Year Plan.
