China's biggest political event of the year has kicked off. Delegates from across the country are gathering in Beijing for the National People's Congress.

At the congress, Chinese premier Li Qiang made an announcement outlining this year's target for economic growth. The target is around 5 percent, the same as last year.

China's Gross Domestic Product grew 5.2 percent last year and met the government's target of around five percent.

Li Qiang said, "We secured a smooth transition from our epidemic response and decisive victory over COVID. We accomplished our main goals for economic and social development last year and made steady progress in pursuing high-quality development, and maintained overall social stability."

Despite hitting the target, China still faces several challenges to its economy. Recovery has generally been lackluster, largely due to the effects of the zero-COVID policy.

The IMF predicts that China's economic growth will slow to 4.6 percent this year. Observers say that by setting a target higher than that, the Chinese government may be aiming to emphasize its policy of propping up the economy.

In order to achieve its goal, China will likely focus on ways to deal with the sluggish real estate market and worsening local government finances.