Streamline Administration, Delegate Power, Strengthen Regulation and Improve Services to Deepen Administrative Reform and Transform Government Functions

Editor's Note: Following is the full text of a national teleconference address by Premier Li Keqiang on May 12.

I. Deepening administrative reform and transforming government functions are strong driving forces behind, and an important guarantee for, development.

To transform government functions lies at the core of administrative reform. Economic reform is essentially about striking a balance between the government and the market by enabling the market to play a decisive role in resources allocation and the government to function better. The first task this government undertook after taking office is to advance administrative reform and transform government functions, with streamlining administration, delegating power and strengthening regulation being the first moves. For years, excess intervention and stifling supervision by the government over microeconomic activities, as well as too much emphasis on review and approval to the neglect of regulation, have sapped economic vitality, incurred high administrative costs and provided breeding grounds for corruption. To streamline administration, delegate power and strengthen regulation is a crucial step to address these acute problems. It tackles the crux of administrative and economic reform and what matters the most in improving the socialist market economy and enhancing social development. It is fair to say that this reform is right at the heart of all reforms with wide-ranging implications.