Senior Communist Party of China (CPC) leader Li Changchun has urged the nation's publishers to make greater efforts to promote the country's culture worldwide.

Li, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, made the remarks at a meeting in Beijing Wednesday to celebrate the publication of the new edition of the Encyclopedia of China and to honor scholars and experts who took part in its compilation.

The new edition of the Encyclopedia of China, published by the Encyclopedia of China Publishing House in April, took more than 30,000 scholars and experts 13 years to finish.

The new edition features revisions of a large number of entries, while others are updated and outdated entries replaced. Experts said it is simpler in language and easier to understand.

"The new edition... is a great gift from our publication industry for the 60th anniversary of the founding of New China," Li said, expressing appreciation for the hard work of the project members.

More than 500 scholars, experts and publication workers involved in the project attended the meeting.

The Encyclopedia of China was the first large comprehensive encyclopedia in the Chinese language. The first edition was published in 1993.

The second edition comprises 32 volumes, 60,000 entries, 30,000 illustrations and 1,000 maps.

(Xinhua News Agency August 27, 2009)