XI JINPING said yesterday that “historic shifts” have been made in the cause of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the country in the past five years.

The five years since the 18th National Congress have been a period of truly remarkable five years in the course of the development of the Party and China, said Xi, noting that the country has been confronted with “sluggish global economic recovery, frequent outbreaks of regional conflicts and disturbances, and intensifying global issues.”

“We have solved many tough problems that were long on the agenda but never resolved, and accomplished many things that were wanted but never got done,” he told more than 2,300 delegates from all walks of life.

Major achievements have been made in economic development, with the country’s GDP rising from 54 trillion to 80 trillion yuan (US$8.2 trillion to US$12.1 trillion), said Xi.

More than 60 million people have been lifted out of poverty, with the poverty headcount ratio dropping from 10.2 percent to less than 4 percent, Xi said.

The Party and the country also made major breakthroughs in deepening reform, launching over 1,500 reform measures, said Xi.

On climate change, he said China has taken a “driving seat” in international cooperation, thus becoming an “important participant, contributor, and torchbearer” in the global endeavor for ecological civilization.

The achievements of the past five years have touched every area and broken new ground, and the changes in China over the past five years have been profound and fundamental, he said. (Xinhua)