Chinese cities turn to video technology to cut coronavirus risk at key meetings
- Delegates are being allowed to log on remotely to discuss their city’s annual work report and budget in the run-up to nationwide meeting
- In one city in Shanxi, around half those attending did so remotely
Chinese cities are allowing delegates to attend the most important political meetings of the year remotely to minimise the risk of Covid-19 spreading in the run-up to the national parliamentary session.
One example is Xinzhou, a city in the northern province of Shanxi, where the local People’s Congress met on Wednesday, a day after its advisory body, the local committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Congress (CPPCC), held its session.
The local people’s congresses are the most important local political events as delegates gather to review the local government’s annual work reports and budgets. The National People’s Congress (NPC) is preceded by these local parliamentary meetings.
In Xinzhou, dozens of delegates gathered in one big hall, while two big screens showed that others had logged in from other venues using videoconferencing technology.
Wang Zhigang, secretary general of the Xinzhou municipal CPPCC, told state news agency Xinhua that around 195 members of the congress had been present in the main venue.
He said the city had employed more than 100 technical staff from China Unicom to guarantee the stability of the network and the confidentiality of the meeting.