Editor's Note: As this year marks the 105th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, CGTN has launched a Q&A session inviting experts to answer our readers' most pressing questions. These questions were compiled based on questionnaires we distributed to readers across our social media platforms.

To understand China's political system, often misunderstood by some in the West, one must understand the Communist Party of China (CPC). 

With that in mind, CGTN talked to Wang Yiwei, vice president of the Academy of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era at Renmin University of China.

CGTN: Please list some basic, underreported facts about the Communist Party of China (CPC) that you believe our global readers should know.

Wang: First, the Communist Party of China, which governs the country, is neither a partisan political party serving only a segment of the population, nor an electoral tool as understood in the West. It sees itself as a representative body for the entire Chinese people, with a mission to rejuvenate the Chinese nation.

Second, the CPC draws on thousands of years of Chinese civilization and acts as its steward. It is a civilization-based party leading a civilization-based state.

Third, membership is open to all Chinese citizens over 18, regardless of class, ethnicity or gender, though admission follows a rigorous review process.

Fourth, the CPC pursues democracy, freedom and independence. It advocates for harmonious coexistence among nations with different social systems, and works towards building a community with a shared future for humanity.

Fifth, the CPC is a democratic party. It derives its legitimacy by being answerable to the people and delivering results that improve their well-being. 

And last, though atheist, the CPC respects freedom of religious belief, and works diligently to serve all the people, regardless of what religion they practice.

CGTN: Against the backdrop of profound changes unseen in a century, the CPC's wealth of governance experience has grown even more relevant. How would you sum up this experience? What universally valuable Chinese solutions can it offer to political parties worldwide?

Wang: The CPC's governance experience can be summed up in the following principles: a problem-oriented approach, goal-driven implementation, integrating knowledge with action, seeking truth from facts, adapting measures to local conditions, and self-reform.

Its purpose is to do good for the people, not to be an electoral instrument.

Its governance philosophy prioritizes steering developments in line with natural trends and drawing inspiration from the age-old Chinese wisdom that the highest form of virtue resembles water – soft, yet endlessly adaptable.