CPC has nearly 89.5 million members

The Communist Party of China (CPC) had a total of 89.447 million members at the end of 2016, the party announced on Friday.

CPC membership rose by 688,000 from 2015, up 0.8 per cent. Grassroots Party units increased by 105,000 to 4.518 million, up 2.4 per cent, the party said in a communique published ahead of the 96th anniversary of CPC's founding on July 1.

Statistics showed the party's "vigour and vitality" have been strengthened, Xinhua news agency quoted the communique as saying.

The growth rate of CPC membership had dropped while the structure of its members has improved since 2013 when the party implemented a recruitment rule which stresses the quality of members while limiting the quantity.

In 2016, the CPC recruited 1.911 million new members, 54,000 less than 2015, including 953,000 members working in frontline production roles, accounting for 49.9 per cent of all new members.

The party had 22.982 million females at the end 2016, accounting for a quarter of all members.

--IANS

mr/