A national credit system should be established to improve Chinese enterprises' credit awareness and upgrade the integrity of individual credit providers, participants at a seminar on credit systems said yesterday in Beijing.

Information on enterprises and government departments should be further opened to the public, said Zhou Shijie, an official with the National Headquarters on Market Order Rectification and Regulation.

"Laws and regulations lag far behind the creation of credit systems, and trial systems should be established in local governments and enterprises first," Zhou said at the event entitled Seminar on China Credit and Integrity Building, organized by China Daily.

Shanghai has established a trial credit system that covers more than 3 million residents.

The Chinese government has decided to establish a national credit system within five years.

A communique passed earlier this month at a session of the 16th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China called for strengthening public awareness of the consumer credit system, and building a system with morality as its support structure, property rights as its basis, and law as its guarantee.

Serving as the principal communicator between government departments and enterprises, business associations have played an important role in building a credit system, said Guo Geping, chairperson of the China Chain Store and Franchise Association.

With China becoming a member of World Trade Organization, it will be more and more open to international investment, and an honest image will help Chinese enterprises face world competition and expand their businesses, Guo said.

Ethical education and training should be enhanced to improve the image of Chinese people and their integrity and awareness of credit issues, she said.

(China Daily October 20, 2003)