China to expand public-private partnerships

China's State Council, the country's cabinet, will expand its public-private partnership (PPP) model in a bid to promote mass entrepreneurship and innovation.

Promotion of PPPs is conducive to innovation-driven development, stabilizing economic growth, increasing jobs and improving people's lives, according to a statement released Friday after a State Council executive meeting presided over by Premier Li Keqiang.

The PPP model facilitates cooperation between the government and businesses to use social capital for projects such as water conservation, transportation and environmental protection.

However, supporting polices are inadequate, and private sector participation is still low, the statement said.

The government should step up reforms to investment and financing mechanisms, relax market access in the public service and infrastructure construction sectors, and simplify approval procedures, the statement said.

China should also improve supporting policies on taxation preferences, land use, financing and capital exit, and set up a reasonable system for investment returns, it said.

The meeting also stressed the importance of national auditing, calling to address problems identified in an audit report released last week in order to better use public funds, according to the statement. Endi