The First Session of the 11th National People's Congress (NPC) opens at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, March 5, 2008.(Xinhua Photo)

The 11th National People's Congress (NPC) of China, the parliament, started its first session on Wednesday with the GDP growth rate this year targeted about 8 percent and CPI increase around 4.8 percent.

Premier Wen Jiabao evaluated government work in the past five years as "making major achievements in reform, opening up and modernization", but also admitted that there are still some prominent issues and deep-rooted problems affecting economic performance.