China's ongoing social and economic transition has stirred growing need for public service among common Chinese, accompanied by an increasingly hot topic of how the Chinese government should reform to offer more effective public service to the general public.

But, undoubtedly, public service remains a new thing for many, even those junior officials who are expected to be the first to bear in mind ideas like "people first".

"In general, our public service study remains in the initial stage and related theories are not yet adequately developed," said Qi Shuyu, a doctor with the research office of China's National School of Administration.

"There are many sub fields under the general public service theory, each with characteristics different from those of others," said Qi. " And the urgent issue is to find ways to incorporate the general public service theory with the sub fields."

Analysts hold that although China has devoted public-service-like efforts in the past decades, the control style service has inevitably born many flaws, typically scars left over from the planned economy era.

"The core reason that China's social development lags behind economic growth is that our public service investment has long been far from enough," he said.

Compared with European countries, China's input into public causes like employment, social security, environmental protection and health are much lower.

A recent survey released by the United Nations indicates that China ranks the 188th among all countries and regions on the health resource sharing degree list.

Statistics from the World Bank show that China's investment in education, from 1990 to 1998, covered only two percent of its gross domestic product, lower than the world's average.

"Without a sound public service system, China's sustainable development target is doomed to suffer many insurmountable barriers," said Qi. "We should now start to establish a public service system with the theory study at the very beginning."

According to Qi, China's public service theory should strike root in the country's cultural tradition and integrate with the country's current situations.

"Cultural tradition and the public's recognition of the theory should be the foremost base of our study," said Qi, stressing that case study instead of theory-to-theory study should be the main study methods.

"The theories now prevailing in China are almost copies of western ones, which should be nationalized via combined with Chin's concrete situations," said Qi.

"To our happiness, public service study in China is rising from a silent science to a hot one, a sign that more and more minds consider it a critical element in the country's administrative reform," said Qi.
 
(Xinhua News Agency June 28, 2004)