2011-03-07 16:53

According to the Ministry of Finance's budget report, China's fiscal expenditure will reach 10.02 trillion yuan this year. That's an increase of 11.9 percent from last year, and this is the first time expenditure exceeded 10 trillion yuan, the Economic Information reported Monday.

The national fiscal expenditure will be geared toward ensuring people's livelihood, reducing the gap between rich and poor and compressing administrative expenses, the newspaper said.

According to the budget, the central government will spend 1.05 trillion yuan in sectors closely related to people's lives – like education, health, social security, employment, low-income housing and culture. Spending in these sectors will increase by 18.1 percent compared to last year.

Spending related to agriculture, farmers and rural areas will total 988.45 billion yuan – up 15.2 percent year-on-year. The tax rebate and transfer for local governments will increase 15.3 percent year-on-year to 3.73 trillion yuan. The central government will also spend a certain amount of money in livelihood-related areas like agricultural water conservancy, transportation and environmental protection.

The total expenses related to people's livelihood will account for approximately two thirds of the central government's expenditure, the newspaper said.

Meanwhile, the government will also reduce administrative costs, according to the report.