SHANGHAI - Shanghai has issued a circular on overseas training of government and Communist Party of China (CPC) officials, forbidding all unnecessary government-funded programs.

No training at public expense should take place overseas if it can be completed at home, according to a circular on the 2014 overseas training application plan issued by Shanghai Municipal Foreign Expert Affairs, a government body in charge of introducing foreign experts and controlling overseas training.

The circular, issued on Sunday, also stipulated that group sizes and the length of overseas stays should be strictly controlled. Overseas tours in the name of training should be prohibited.

Overseas training for CPC officials and reserve cadres should be directly organized by the Organization Department of CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee. Organization departments at district and county levels should not directly organize overseas training, it said.