A national credit system should be established to improve
Chinese enterprises' credit awareness and upgrade the integrity of
individual credit providers, participants at a seminar on credit
systems said yesterday in Beijing.
Information on enterprises and government departments should be
further opened to the public, said Zhou Shijie, an official with
the National Headquarters on Market Order Rectification and
Regulation.
"Laws and regulations lag far behind the creation of credit
systems, and trial systems should be established in local
governments and enterprises first," Zhou said at the event entitled
Seminar on China Credit and Integrity Building, organized by China
Daily.
Shanghai has established a trial credit system that covers more
than 3 million residents.
The Chinese government has decided to establish a national
credit system within five years.
A communique passed earlier this month at a session of the 16th
Central Committee of the Communist Party of China called for
strengthening public awareness of the consumer credit system, and
building a system with morality as its support structure, property
rights as its basis, and law as its guarantee.
Serving as the principal communicator between government
departments and enterprises, business associations have played an
important role in building a credit system, said Guo Geping,
chairperson of the China Chain Store and Franchise Association.
With China becoming a member of World Trade Organization, it
will be more and more open to international investment, and an
honest image will help Chinese enterprises face world competition
and expand their businesses, Guo said.
Ethical education and training should be enhanced to improve the
image of Chinese people and their integrity and awareness of credit
issues, she said.
(China Daily October 20, 2003)