Chinese govt moves ahead with management reforms

BEIJING - The Chinese government has pressed ahead with management reforms by scrapping or decentralizing administrative approval rights in an effort to improve efficiency and stem corruption.

Li Zhangze, spokesman for the group spearheading the reforms under the State Council, said a total of 632 administrative approval items were either dismissed or relegated to governments at lower levels in the past year.

"Through these efforts, the government has achieved important progress in simplifying administrative procedures and bringing changes to management," Li said at a press conference held in Beijing.

Li said the cancellation of unreasonable approval rights, which could be abused for improper gains by officials, have helped boost the market.

The government aims to scrap and decentralize another 200 administrative approval items within the year, with new amendments to be made as they form an investment project catalogue.

The latest approval reform will make it much easier for domestic companies to invest overseas.

On Sunday, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced it will cede its previous control over the number of overseas investment project. Now, companies only need to register with the ministry, not gain approval, with a few exceptions.

Li said improper licensing procedures or assessment requirements on companies will be targeted and removed as the reform progresses.

Supervision will also become more important amid the process of simplifying approvals. Government procedures will receive tighter supervision with future measures, Li said.

A new regulation on corporate information disclosure, which was announced by the State Council last month, is expected to encourage companies to act ethically, as transparency will allow for closer public scrutiny. The new rules are to take effect on Oct 1.