China makes notable progress in business environment, poverty alleviation: auditor general

China's business environment improved and poverty alleviation work made notable progress in 2019, Hu Zejun, auditor general of the National Audit Office, said on June 18.

Entrusted by the State Council, Hu delivered an audit report on the enforcement of the central government's 2019 budget and other fiscal revenue and expenditure at the bimonthly session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

China reduced tax and fee burden by 2.36 trillion yuan (about $333 billion) in 2019, which further improved the business environment and strengthened market vitality, Hu said, adding that all industries benefited from the tax cuts, and fees on enterprises were regulated effectively.

Last year, the country made a crucial achievement in poverty alleviation work as all local authorities and government departments took targeted measures to lift people out of poverty, according to the report.

The report said that only 1.5 percent of the poverty alleviation funds were found improperly used during random inspections, a sharp decrease from 2016.

Local governments were urged to take more effective measures to ensure stable employment and improve the management of high-standard farmland projects, said the report.

The report said the National Audit Office organized more than 20,000 auditors to audit the funds meant for COVID-19 prevention and control. In response to the audit, local authorities accelerated the allocation of more than 7.65 billion yuan and nearly 100 million pieces of materials.

By the end of March this year, nearly 137.19 billion yuan was allocated from central and local budgets for COVID-19 response, said the report.