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The Urumqi government plans to spend 119.4 million yuan ($19.5 million) on government-funded overseas trips, vehicles and receptions this year, according to the 2013 budget plan released on July 26.
This is the first time that Urumqi government is publishing such a budget, and this year's plan includes 9.65 million yuan for receptions, 2 million yuan for overseas trips and 107.78 million yuan for the purchase and maintenance of vehicles.
The spending on vehicles accounts for more than 90 percent of the total, involving 36 million yuan for purchases and 71.78 million yuan for maintenance.
The expenses regarding official receptions, accounting for 8 percent of the total expenses, will mainly concern international visits, large-scale events and exchanges between provinces and regions.
The expenses for overseas trips, accounting for less than 1.7 percent of the total, will consist of spending on international academic conferences, overseas training, science and technology seminars, major international sporting events and cultural exchanges as well as communication between governments.
Zhang Lei, a professor at Xinjiang University of Finance and Economics, said that the disclosure of the expenditures is definite progress, but the government should provide more comprehensive and detailed information on the issue, adding that an evaluation system and data base should be established so that ordinary people would be able to understand the data.
Edited by Zhou Yuanyuan and Niva Whyman
