The second National Conference on Reading opened in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, on Sunday.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, said reading and study are indispensable to building a great modern socialist country and advancing national rejuvenation.

It is necessary to take reading as the most basic element of cultural development, said Li, calling for efforts to improve publishing quality, speed up the building of a nationwide reading promotion service system that covers residents in both urban and rural areas, and encourage everyone to read and pursue lifelong learning.

The conference, which will run until Tuesday, is sponsored by institutions including the publishing bureau of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee and the publicity department of the CPC Zhejiang Provincial Committee. A number of activities will be held during the event, such as forums, exhibitions, and reading promotion programs.