Budget transparency

The promise by the Ministry of Finance to further increase the transparency of information related to the central government budget is an encouraging sign that the central government will set a good example for their local counterparts in the disclosure of government information.

The spokesman of the ministry said on Tuesday that the ministry this year would disclose in detail the budget of central government departments for overseas trips, the procurement and maintenance of government cars and the fees for official receptions. And that the departments under the central government budget will be required to publish their own expenditure on such items.

This has been long overdue. There have been estimated figures about how much money both the central and local governments spend annually on government cars, on overseas trips and on banquets.