<p>President Xi Jinping is expected to be handed a historic third term in control of China on October 23, it emerged on Saturday, after a spokesman confirmed the Communist Party's 20th Congress will end the previous day.</p>.<p>About 2,300 party delegates from every province will gather at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing from Sunday for the mostly closed-door conclave, to rubber-stamp the country's next leadership make-up.</p>.<p>The five-yearly talking shop will get under way at 10:00 am (0200 GMT) with an opening ceremony, after which Xi is expected to deliver a lengthy speech that will give an assessment of the previous term as well as a roadmap for the next five years.</p>.<p>Should everything go to plan, after the week-long meeting 69-year-old Xi will be reconfirmed as the party's general secretary, cementing his position as China's most powerful leader since Mao Zedong.</p>.<p><strong>Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/how-china-progressed-in-10-years-under-xi-jinping-1153439.html" target="_blank">How China progressed in 10 years under Xi Jinping</a></strong></p>.<p>At the highly choreographed conclave, the 2,296 participants will also pick members of the party's roughly 200-member Central Committee, which in turn selects the 25-person Politburo and its all-powerful Standing Committee -- the country's highest leadership body.</p>.<p>The day after Congress closes, the new Standing Committee -- currently a group of seven men including General Secretary Xi -- should be revealed, if this year follows the same convention as previous Congresses.</p>.<p>Congress spokesman Sun Yeli confirmed the closing date of October 22 and told reporters: "The preparations for the Congress have now been fully completed."</p>.<p>During the two-hour press conference -- in which Chinese state media asked several questions, as well as some international outlets -- Sun said the proportion of female delegates had increased to 27 per cent, from 24 per cent at the last Congress in 2017.</p>.<p>There were no questions asked about Xi.</p>.<p>China is holding Sunday's opening ceremony under a strict zero-Covid policy, sealing organisers and journalists in a virus-secure bubble two days in advance.</p>.<p>Participants have been ordered to take daily Covid-19 tests to attend events, some of which are being held remotely by video link instead of in person.</p>.<p>At a hotel in western Beijing, organisers have set up a press centre crammed with exhibitions extolling Xi, festooned in the Communist Party's signature red and gold.</p>.<p>Scattered around the venue are tables piled with books on Xi's philosophy and China's development, while one display features an AI-driven "digital human" that tells jokes and sings songs upon request.</p>
<p>President Xi Jinping is expected to be handed a historic third term in control of China on October 23, it emerged on Saturday, after a spokesman confirmed the Communist Party's 20th Congress will end the previous day.</p>.<p>About 2,300 party delegates from every province will gather at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing from Sunday for the mostly closed-door conclave, to rubber-stamp the country's next leadership make-up.</p>.<p>The five-yearly talking shop will get under way at 10:00 am (0200 GMT) with an opening ceremony, after which Xi is expected to deliver a lengthy speech that will give an assessment of the previous term as well as a roadmap for the next five years.</p>.<p>Should everything go to plan, after the week-long meeting 69-year-old Xi will be reconfirmed as the party's general secretary, cementing his position as China's most powerful leader since Mao Zedong.</p>.<p><strong>Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/international/world-news-politics/how-china-progressed-in-10-years-under-xi-jinping-1153439.html" target="_blank">How China progressed in 10 years under Xi Jinping</a></strong></p>.<p>At the highly choreographed conclave, the 2,296 participants will also pick members of the party's roughly 200-member Central Committee, which in turn selects the 25-person Politburo and its all-powerful Standing Committee -- the country's highest leadership body.</p>.<p>The day after Congress closes, the new Standing Committee -- currently a group of seven men including General Secretary Xi -- should be revealed, if this year follows the same convention as previous Congresses.</p>.<p>Congress spokesman Sun Yeli confirmed the closing date of October 22 and told reporters: "The preparations for the Congress have now been fully completed."</p>.<p>During the two-hour press conference -- in which Chinese state media asked several questions, as well as some international outlets -- Sun said the proportion of female delegates had increased to 27 per cent, from 24 per cent at the last Congress in 2017.</p>.<p>There were no questions asked about Xi.</p>.<p>China is holding Sunday's opening ceremony under a strict zero-Covid policy, sealing organisers and journalists in a virus-secure bubble two days in advance.</p>.<p>Participants have been ordered to take daily Covid-19 tests to attend events, some of which are being held remotely by video link instead of in person.</p>.<p>At a hotel in western Beijing, organisers have set up a press centre crammed with exhibitions extolling Xi, festooned in the Communist Party's signature red and gold.</p>.<p>Scattered around the venue are tables piled with books on Xi's philosophy and China's development, while one display features an AI-driven "digital human" that tells jokes and sings songs upon request.</p>