Efficient governance making a difference

As a megacity with a population of more than 21 million, the Beijing government has been making efforts to improve its governance to better serve the public, especially when handling difficult issues.

Based on its public service hotline, Beijing initiated a "swift response to public complaints" reform in January 2019, which has helped the city form a vital mechanism in responding to public complaints and adopting people's advice on city governance.

To further improve the quality of its public services, the city government is promoting a service aimed at solving potential public difficulties ahead of their complaints, listening to residents' requirements and giving swift feedback.

"I heard that we will get our property ownership certificates next year. I'm so thrilled that you have done great work for us," said a senior citizen living in the Xiaonanzhuang residential community in Beijing's Haidian district.

Liu Chunying, Party secretary of the community, and who has worked there for 20 years, said many residents cannot find their housing removal agreements that were signed in the 1990s, which has blocked them getting their property ownership certificates.

"Those certificates are needed on many occasions, like for kids' education, new property purchases and bank loans. Thus, it's crucially important for them to get the certificates done," she said.

The public complaints and proposals bureau of Haidian subdistrict where the community is located, gathered people from different departments to help deal with the challenging matter after hearing the needs earlier this year.

The bureau held three meetings and then called for several government departments and the companies that developed the buildings in the last century to meet with the residents face-to-face in June, sorting the related materials.

They even set up a temporary service station in the Xiaonanzhuang community with staff from different departments to work on site.

The system has been established to better handle complaints and proposals from the public, Liu said.

"The results are obvious that people are more satisfied with the government's work. They feel happier and safer."

Chen Huiying, deputy head and spokeswoman of the civil affairs bureau of Haidian district, said the local government has been making efforts to better use new technology to improve its governance.

For instance, based on blockchain technology, the efficiency of Haidian's notary system has been greatly increased. Currently, 207 notary services are provided to residents, such as ID cards, marriage and birth certificates.

"The information can be obtained based on blockchain technology at once, effectively reducing the time required for notarization," Chen said. "People no longer need to go to various government departments several times to get the documents. Haidian, which is well-known for its science and technology development, will apply more advanced technology in its civil services, sharing those achievements with the public."