The CPC Central Committee and the State Council recently issued a statement, laying out a plan to overhaul associations and guilds affiliated with government departments.

According to the plan, these associations and guilds will be detached from the government departments, and will instead be registered with civil affairs authorities as independent organizations.

The plan aims to reduce corruption and guarantee fair competition among associations and guilds. The organizations will have their own accounts and do their own accounting, instead of sharing an account with a government department.

Additionally, they will gradually receive less government funding and, by 2018, they will no longer receive any such funding.

The associations and guilds that are operating in government buildings should vacate the premises by the end of 2017.

Government-affiliated associations and guilds currently require approvals from the government departments regarding their personnel decisions. The plan requires that the associations and guilds will make personnel decisions on their own as part of the efforts to be separated from the authorities.

In addition, government employees will not be allowed to work in associations or guilds. Those who already hold such positions will be required to choose - to either work for these organizations or for the government.

Senior officials will not be allowed to work in associations or guilds in the first three years following their retirement. In order to support the associations and guilds in the process of separation from the authorities, the government should encourage its departments to purchase services offered by these organizations.

Also, the government should encourage these organizations to take part in making policies and laws as well as formulating industrial standards.

The authorities of civil affairs, finance, tax and audit should strengthen their supervision on associations and guilds separated from the government.

The authorities should also set up a system to record and publish the credit information of associations and guilds.

About 100 national associations and guilds will be selected in the latter half of 2015 to carry out a pilot program enabling them to be separated from the authorities - and more organizations will join the pilot program in the next two years.