Takes From China's Most Important Political Event

China’s “Two Sessions” are the annual meetings of the national legislature and the top political advisory body—the name Two Sessions is due to the dual and parallel nature of the meetings. The National People’s Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference's (CPPCC) meetings are branded as the most important showcases of Chinese politics. They take place over a two-week period every March. This year, the 13th convention of the Two Sessions' focus was over economy due to the slowdown of the growth rate of China. The meetings took off on 5 March 2019 and were ended on 15 March. 

This podcast is by SupChina, which describes itself as "an independent digital media company dedicated to informing, entertaining, and educating a global audience about business, technology, politics, and culture in China". SupChina has a daily newsletter on China's politics, business and cultural news—it curates various news on China and includes a podcast network.

Peking resident Jordan Schneider, who hosts the "ChinaEconTalk" podcast, sat down with Chris Beddor, a columnist for Reuters Breakingviews, to discuss highlights from this year’s Two Sessions. Their topics include state-owned enterprise reform, implications for Made in China 2025, the evolving role of the Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and the state of the Chinese economy, as well as the reforms presented by Keqiang.

This is a long podcast, lasting about an hour. But once you listen to it, you will basically cover all the territory concerning the Two Sessions, and complete a crash course on contemporary Chinese politics and economy. Overall, this is a podcast that is interesting for both the beginners in Chinese affairs, as well as the experts.