Premier Li Keqiang held a symposium on administrative streamlining, combining power delegation with strengthening regulation and optimizing public services in Shanghai on Nov 21.

Premier Li said the efforts of streamlining administration, delegating more powers to lower-level governments, improving regulation and optimizing services is a major move in deepening the country’s all-round reform, especially supply-side reform, transform government functions and promote entrepreneurship and innovation. It is also the key to advance economic system reform and balance the relation between the government and the market, said the Premier.

Citing the existing issues of the reform, the Premier said. “We should further shift the old mindset, conduct self-reform on the government itself and have courage and determination to make sacrifices to promote the reform, in the pursuit of the long-term benefit of the people”.

The Premier also called for strengthening the power delegation efforts in key sectors and chains, including improving the mechanism of negative list business registration, power list and responsibility list, and making clear of approval items in such sectors as economic construction, elderly care, education and medical care, which concerns people’s livelihood. This is to make sure the related approval items are cancelled or delegated to low levels.

He also urged to relax the market access to facilitate the participation of social capitals.

Meanwhile, the Premier urged exploring new modes to unify multiple assessments into one, by conducting joint checks in the field of project construction, to simplify the procedures.

He also called for overhaul of various industry access certificates, production licenses and vocational qualifications, and deepening commercial system reform and the reform of “integrating multiple certificates into one” and “separating certificates from licenses”, providing conveniences to enterprises for business license applications.

According to the Premier, supervision before and during corporate matters should be strengthened to create a fair competitive environment.

At the same time, random selection of inspection objects and inspectors as well as public disclosure of inspection results will be adopted nationwide next year. Related departments should carry out joint supervision to avoid overlapped checks and ease enterprise burdens.

The Premier said the credit penalty system should be set up and optimized to give inspections teeth. Leading information technology should be applied to increase supervision efficiency, with an attitude to encourage new industries and business patterns in an inclusive market.

Services, said Premier Li, should be provided in a smart, convenient and fair approach. Governments at all levels should promote internet Plus government services, and accelerate construction of shared internet service platforms to offer services to enterprises and residents online.

In order to promote mass entrepreneurship and innovation, and SMEs, more efforts should be in place to provide better services in policy explanation, legal consultation, sites, financing, employment and social security, said the Premier.

Meanwhile, departments and local governments should eliminate unreasonable certificates to facilitate people’s lives.

The Premier further highlighted that administrative streamlining, fair supervision, and optimized services concerns the overall development and long-term benefits, adding that reform practices in free trade zones should be promoted to unleash market vitality and public creativity, bringing China’s economy to a medium and high level.

State Councilor Yang Jing, Minister of Science and Technology Wang Gang and government leaders from 11 provinces and prefecture-level cities in east, central, west and northeast China also attended the symposium.