The Chinese press frequently points to the scanty resources for charity programmes as an embarrassment to this country, given there are still so many people who have difficulty just obtaining the basic means for survival.

Some national lawmakers complained to the press, in their annual session last month, that China's charity is only one-7,320th of the United States, in terms of the financial contribution collected from each person.

Whether the figure is accurate is not the point, as it was given by a Buddhist monk who did his own research on the Internet and not from the National Bureau of Statistics.

Charity is scanty indeed, judging from the charity activities one can see on the streets in some of the most affluent cities on the Chinese mainland. In Hong Kong, in contrast, everyone has to prepare some coins and small notes every Friday morning for the volunteer school kids collecting charity funds in subway stations and main streets.

As the press has pointed out, the reason for the embarrassment is not hard to understand China still does not have an appropriate law to encourage charity.

In response to the complaints from lawmakers and political advisors, Li Liguo, vice-minister of civil affairs, openly pledged that in two years China will have a draft charity law. But it should be pointed out that between now and then, plenty of things can be done other than just waiting. One thing is to make the existing charity funds grow, and the other is to make their management system healthier.

It would be simplistic to imagine that once the law is available, charity will experience a big leap forward. With the law, inevitably more donations will come from big corporations. But charity finance will not necessarily be trusted and reputable.

Charity is not just a money matter. Having a charity industry that betrays the public trust will be an even greater embarrassment to China.

Internationally, it is reported that less than half, sometimes only 20 per cent, of some African aid programmes reach local people.

The more public donations there are, the more vulnerable they will be more vulnerable to those who, unable to feel any sense of moral responsibility, treat them just as easy money. Management, especially an anti-corruption mechanism, is of pivotal importance to charity's healthy development.

Without decent and transparent management, charity funds, especially large ones supposedly from government backgrounds, can easily become a hotbed of embezzlement and cause more problems than they solve.

The press has already reported cases of misappropriating aid funds, for example by local village chiefs and headmasters for banquets and other after-hour leisure activities.

It would be a good thing if the national auditing authorities can take some pre-emptive moves by setting up a standard practice, such as a set of regulations, for mainland charity organizations ranging from qualifications of managers to financial practice.

In fact, there are already early signs, in fact, of existing charities wasting their money in unnecessary ways. Last week, on one of Beijing's typical cold windy days in early spring, I saw a Chinese-language reporter whom I had met on several assignments emerge from a national charity programme press conference carrying a long, silk-covered box. "Look what a stupid gift they gave out," he said, opening up the box and showing me a jumbo-size Chinese paper fan, quite elegantly made except for the timing. "Still don't get enough wind?" he joked.

And the brochure was even more of a waste as the programme must have printed thousands of copies. With top quality paper and a hard cover of an ugly, pompous design in metal-effect print, it was in fact just a small book containing some basic information (but not financial information) about the programme.

It was a charity organization, one with the background of a government of a developing nation where poverty is still widespread. Why must it try to give itself an image similar to a multinational banking organization, or a rich man's secret club?

(China Daily April 3, 2006)