China will push forward the reform of its administrative system and government restructuring in four respects over the next five years, head of the State Commission Office for Public Sector Reform (SCOPSR) Zhang Zhijian said in Beijing on Tuesday.

Zhang said the four respects included transforming the role of government in line with the requirements of the developing market economy and the World Trade Organization (WTO), streamlining local governments in western areas to improve their efficiency in public services, strengthening market supervisory institutions and redefining non-profit and intermediary public institutions for a clearer relationship with the government and a stronger market role.

Zhang made the remarks at a signing ceremony of the Public Sector Reform in the People's Republic of China program between the SCOPSR, the International Center for Economic and Technical Exchanges and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).

This is the third phase of the SCOPSR-UNDP program that started in 1990.

Zhang said the SCOPSR-UNDP program had extensively involved restructuring of the Chinese government over the years. The content of the program mainly conformed to the requirements and agenda of public sector reform in China. The major results of research projects under the program had been adopted by Chinese decision makers.

He called the inception of the third phase of the program "a visionary move."

The 5-year program will focus on four areas -- reform of the administrative system and government restructuring after China's accession to the WTO, efficiency of local governments in western areas of China, market supervision and law enforcement, and reform of the administrative system of non-profit and intermediary public institutions.

The UNDP will contribute US$1 million to the program, and the Chinese government US$1.17 million.

( June 19, 2002)