Reporter Li Hainan.
How to ensure the huge amount of funds needed to support post-disaster recovery and reconstruction and the improvement of disaster prevention, mitigation and relief capabilities?**The Ministry of Finance will issue an additional 1 trillion yuan of 2023 treasury bonds in the fourth quarter of this year, and it will be clearly arranged to local governments through transfer payments.
According to the relevant arrangements, the additional issuance of 1 trillion yuan of treasury bonds will be arranged for local construction projects through transfer payments, and the local governments will be urged to earnestly strengthen project management, turn the projects into popular projects, high-quality projects, and clean projects, and give full play to their positive role in post-disaster recovery and reconstruction and in enhancing disaster prevention, mitigation and relief capabilities.
The post-disaster reconstruction and improvement of disaster resilience are urgent, and the process of allocating project funds is also vigorous. The National Development and Reform Work Conference held from December 17 to 18 revealed that the National Development and Reform Commission recently issued a list of nearly 2,900 projects in the first batch of additional treasury bonds to relevant departments. In addition, according to the first batch of identified projects, the Ministry of Finance has issued the first batch of treasury bond funds budget of 237.9 billion yuan.
Nearly 2,900 projects and a budget of 237.9 billion yuan of national debt funds not only highlight the effect of precise "drip irrigation", but also show the decisive decision-making and response mechanism of "China speed". This year, many places in China have suffered heavy rains, floods, typhoons and other disasters, and some areas have been seriously affected and suffered large losses, and the task of local post-disaster recovery and reconstruction is relatively heavy. At the same time, in recent years, various extreme natural disasters have occurred frequently in China, which has put forward higher requirements for China's national disaster mitigation and relief capabilities.
All these have put forward new requirements for the construction of related projects, and it is more important to ensure that the construction funds are in place in a timely manner.
The issuance of additional treasury bonds is one of the most direct and effective means at the national level to support the implementation of large local projects, especially major livelihood and infrastructure projects. Wang Hao, a professor at the China Economic Research Center of the National School of Development of Peking University, said in an interview with a reporter from the China Economic Times that through the issuance of treasury bonds to dock the list of projects, to prevent the emergence of "flooding" type of ineffective investment, while driving the acceleration of project construction, it further demonstrates the policy of effective investment to stabilize growth and grasp the deep meaning of the economic initiative.
It is understood that 237.9 billion yuan of direct funds have been issued, including 107.5 billion yuan of subsidy funds for post-disaster recovery and reconstruction and improvement of disaster prevention and mitigation capabilitiesThe subsidy fund for the construction of high-standard farmland in the northeast region and the disaster-stricken areas in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei reached 125.4 billion yuanThe subsidy fund for the construction of the comprehensive prevention and control system of key natural disasters (construction of meteorological infrastructure projects) is 5 billion yuan.
Among them, the project of recovery and reconstruction and the improvement of disaster prevention capacity includes the post-disaster recovery and reconstruction of educational and medical and health institutions, the post-disaster recovery and reconstruction of infrastructure such as transportation and water conservancy, and the construction of reservoir risk removal and reinforcement, river management and other projects. In addition, the subsidy funds for the construction of high-standard farmland will be used to support the construction, renovation and upgrading of high-standard farmland and the restoration of disaster-damaged farmland in 1,336 counties across the country, totaling 54 million mu.
It is not difficult to predict that, driven by the funds of national bonds, the crowding effect of effective investment will further drive relevant local financial institutions and even private investment, and increase support for the construction of related projects.
Wen Bin, chief economist of China Minsheng Bank, said in an interview with a reporter from the China Economic Times that since the beginning of this year, the financial sector has driven infrastructure investment and major infrastructure construction has been in a state of steady progress, whether it is the issuance of local bonds or treasury bonds, they are focusing on supporting the construction of major infrastructure projects, which has also led to the growth of the proportion of medium and long-term infrastructure loans and the use of funds for policy-based development financial instruments.
At present, major projects for post-disaster reconstruction and the construction of a series of infrastructure related to disaster prevention and mitigation will also provide an important starting point for stabilizing investment in the future. Wen Bin said that the issuance of special bonds will also drive banks and other financial institutions to increase the support of supporting funds, further play the crowding effect, and promote the efficient implementation of project construction.
According to the arrangement, the additional 1 trillion yuan of treasury bonds issued in the fourth quarter of this year will be arranged for 500 billion yuan through this year's budget and carried forward to next year's 500 billion yuan.
Zheng Shajie, director of the National Development and Reform Commission, proposed that all localities should speed up the allocation and use of funds, strengthen project supervision, promote project construction with high quality, and form a physical workload as soon as possible in accordance with the management measures for the additional issuance of 2023 treasury bonds. Zheng Shajie said that the review of other projects will be accelerated, and a batch of mature projects will be issued, and a batch will be issued, and strive to be completed as soon as possible.