BEIJING, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- Top legislator Zhang Dejiang on Wednesday said more should be done to support the development of county- and township-level people's congresses.

Local departments of the Communist Party of China should play a better role in the supervision and assistance of local people's congresses, said Zhang, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, at a meeting here.

Deputies to county and township people's congresses should receive better training that focuses on the decision-making skills integral to local affairs and supervision, Zhang said.

He urged deputies to establish and maintain close contact with residents, and to be willingly supervised by the local community.

Zhang also promised to allocate more resources to county and township people's congresses.