Integrated govt unit experiment sets efficiency example

TIANJIN - A pilot to streamline administrative approvals by combining government departments has proven a success after a three-month trial in Tianjin.

The Binhai New Area Administrative Approval Bureau in Tianjin, the first of its kind in the country, was inaugurated on May 20 when integration of 216 administrative approval items and staff from 18 different government departments were folded into one unit.

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By Tuesday, the bureau had handled 38,348 administration-related items and completed 97.9 percent of them, with the registration of 1,812 new companies.

The bureau re-arranged the 216 administrative approval items and canceled 43 items, or one fifth of the total, said Zhang Tiejun, director of the bureau on Wednesday.

The Chinese government has been trying to streamline administrative procedures in order to reduce market barriers and boost economic vitality.

The Binhai New Area Administrative Approval Bureau is a local experiment in line with the reform and has shown its high efficiency.

It only takes one day to complete the registration of a new firm, which is the shortest time nationwide, said Zhang.

The approval of each government investment project reduces from 45 to 25 work days and that of an enterprise investment propjet from 30 work days to 20, according to Zhang.

To facilitate investment and companies' smooth operation, 87 items that previously required sophisticated government approval procedures will be removed or delegated to lower-level authorities, said the State Council, China's cabinet, Wednesday.