keywords to understand china

大道至簡

在中国传统文化中，“大道至简”是指大道理（基本原理、方法和规律）是极其简单的，简单到一两句话就能说明白。中国总理李克强在2015年《政府工作报告》中提出“大道至简”，在此后的一次会议中他对此作出阐释，“简”来源于《论语·雍也》“居敬而行简”，“‘居敬，就是我们作为公务人员，首先要在内心敬畏人民。‘行简就是不要用太繁多的东西来扰民。”李克强认为，这与中国政府简政放权的理念是非常吻合的。

Great Truths Are Always Simple

There is a saying in traditional Chinese culture that goes “Great truths are always simple”. It means that fundamental principles， approaches and guiding rules are invariably straightforward and can be explained very concisely in simple words. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang quoted this saying in his Report on the Work of the Government to the National Peoples Congress in March 2015. In a subsequent meeting he further elaborated on it. The concept of simplicity， he said， comes from The Analects （a collection of ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius sayings and ideas） and advocates the virtue of holding the people in high regard and streamlining governance. In other words， we as civil servants must first of all treat the people with respect， and never burden them with too much red tape. This， he said， dovetails with our efforts at streamlining governance and decentralization.

简政放权

“简政”，即解决机构职能交叉、政出多门、人浮于事、相互掣肘的现象，解决社会公共产品和服务提供不足、行政效率低下的问题。“放权”，则是解决对经济活动审批过多、审批程序复杂、审批周期长效率低的问题，解决政府管了一些不该管的事情、一些该管的事情却没管好的问题。中国本届政府把加快转变职能、简政放权作为开门第一件大事。到2013年底，分批取消和下放了416项行政审批等事项，2014年取消和下放审批事项200项以上。转变政府职能的核心要义，是要切实做好“放管”结合。“‘放是放活，而不是放任；‘管要管好，而不是管死。”

简政放权是为了理顺政府与市场的关系，更好地发挥市场在资源配置中的作用，归根结底是促改革调结构惠民生。由事前审批变为事中事后监管，不是给政府工作“减压”，而是相关工作要做得更细致，监管要更到位。这种工作方式的转变，对政府职能部门提出了更高的要求：不仅观念要变，更要增长能力，要主动研究市场规律，具备前瞻眼光，对市场发展有利的要积极鼓励，对市场发展不利的要及时调整。

Streamlining Government and Delegating Authorities

Streamlining government aims at eliminating overstaffing and consolidating duplicate or overlapping and often mutually interfering government functions， so as to better address problems such as the inadequate provision of social public goods and services and a lack of efficiency in government work. Delegating authority is intended to cut red tape that subjects an unnecessarily extensive array of business activities to a complex and lengthy government approval process. Such a move should free the government from unwarranted reach into areas it should not focus on， therefore allowing it to prioritize what really falls within its purview， especially duties it is supposed to perform but has not performed adequately.

The current Chinese administration has made it a top priority to accelerate the process of transforming government functions， streamlining government and delegating authority. By the end of 2013， a total of 416 items originally requiring State Council review and approval had been reclassified as exempt from such review or sent to lower levels of the government for approval. More than 200 items were addressed in a similar manner in 2014. The key to transforming government functions is to strike the correct balance between delegation and the exercise of control. To delegate authority is meant to inject more vitality into economic activities rather than embracing an unqualified laissez-faire approach. To exercise control is to ensure that the market functions appropriately， rather than stifling the economy with regulatory overreach.

The initiative to streamline government and delegate authority helps rationalize the relationship between the government and the market， giving the market a bigger role to play in allocating resources. This ultimately propels reform， helps restructuring and improves peoples wellbeing. The shifting of focus from pre-implementation approval to monitoring during and after project implementation calls for a more detail-oriented and better targeted supervisory function for the government， instead of reducing its workload. Such a change represents a challenge for government departments. There is now a need for a paradigm shift and enhanced capacity building. It is vital to develop a forward-looking vision and be proactive in gauging market dynamics with a view on amplifying the positive effect of market drivers and minimizing the negative influence of any market failure in a timely manner.