Cai Qi, the fifth-ranked member in the Communist Party’s hierarchy, has been picked to head the Central Party School, the top training ground for cadres.

Cai, 70, sits on the elite Politburo Standing Committee and is secretary of the party’s secretariat as well as director of the party’s general office.

His new post at the party school means that he will also oversee the training and selection of the party’s top officials.

The appointment became public on Friday when state broadcaster CCTV reported on a school graduation ceremony.

Cai has worked with Xi for decades and long been seen as one of his closest aides.

The two men first crossed paths in the eastern province of Fujian in the 1980s and again in neighbouring Zhejiang province in the 2000s, when Xi was promoted to various leadership positions.