Public procurement and public resource transactions in China have expanded into more sectors over the past two years, with continuous improvements of the relevant trading systems, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) said on Wednesday.
Since China issued a new guideline for national public resource transactions at the end of last year, the types of resources that can be traded have gradually increased.
Previously, public resource transactions mainly focused on areas such as construction project bidding, government procurement, and transfer of land use and mining rights.
Under the new guideline, the scope has broadened to public resources, including natural resources, assets and equity, and environmental rights, which are suitable for market-based allocation. For instance, this includes the transfer of income rights from rural collective-owned assets and the sale or lease of state-owned assets in administrative institutions.
Besides, in July, China announced that procurement by state-owned enterprises (SOEs) will be integrated into the national public resources transaction system, which will benefit the overall industrial and supply chains in terms of management and stability.
"Including procurement made by SOEs in the public resources transaction system will give full play to the large-scale purchasing power of these enterprises, promoting the digital and green developments of the transaction system," said Hu Dajian, assistant to the president of the CFLP.
Another notable trend in public procurement is the decline in volume.
In 2023, the total transaction volume of public procurement in China reached 46 trillion yuan (about 6.3 trillion U.S. dollars), down 4.16 percent year on year. The transaction volume in key sectors, such as construction project bidding, government procurement, land use and mining rights transfers, and state-owned asset transactions, decreased by four percent to 21.9 trillion yuan compared to 2022. And this downward trend continued in the first 10 months of 2024.
"In both government and SOE procurement, improving procurement quality and efficiency is the key part. Overexpansion of procurement scale should be avoided; instead, the focus of attention should be on whether the procurement can effectively support economic restructuring, technological innovation, and balanced regional development. While the overall volume of public procurement has decreased, its structure is shifting in a positive direction, with greater support for independent innovation and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)," said Hu.
In the past two years, the annual procurement volume of central SOEs has averaged around 13 trillion yuan (about 1.8 trillion U.S. dollars), benefiting over two million businesses of all sizes across industrial chains.
China's public procurement, resource transaction expand to more sectors
Li Yuhua, a farmer-turned forest ranger from a mountainous village in Dulongjiang Town, southwest China's Yunnan Province, has spent nine years protecting the forests in her hometown while helping local people increasing their incomes.
Li's family was once a registered impoverished household, relying mainly on corn farming for living. Things began to change for her family in 2016 when China launched a policy allowing registered impoverished population to work as ecological forest rangers, and Li became one of the first ecological forest rangers in the town.
"When I first began to work as a forest ranger, it was hard for me even to climb mountains, let alone climb rocks and cross rivers. But I told myself that since the country gave me this opportunity, I must do it well. I worked hard to improve my physical fitness and learn new skills, always actively taking the missions of patrolling mountains," said Li.
As Li often wears a colorful, vibrantly striped "Dulong blanket," a traditional clothing of the Dulong ethnic group, the villagers call her the "rainbow ranger."
"I think the name 'Rainbow Ranger' is beautiful. It makes me feel like a rainbow for us women of Dulong ethnic group guarding our homeland," Li said.
Dulong is a mountain-dwelling ethnic group in southwest China. It is one of the least populous of China's 56 ethnic groups, and the people were known for "direct transition" from primitive life to the modern socialist society at the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.
Most Dulong people live in Dulongjiang Town, where an inhospitable mountainous terrain used to thwart the place's development for decades. The town remained to be one of the poorest areas in Yunnan Province and even in the entire country. Thanks to government inputs and the development of industries with local features, the Dulong people have been experiencing remarkable life changes. In 2018, the Dulong ethnic group shook off poverty as a whole.
Beyond safeguarding forests, Li took the lead in developing non-timber forest-based economy in the town, guiding local residents to grow plants like Chinese black cardamom and wild-simulated lingzhi mushrooms as well as raising cattle and bees.
In 2025, the total output value of the town's non-timber forest-based economy reached nearly 30 million yuan (around 4.3 million U.S. dollars), with the annual average income of 43 households increasing by more than 20,000 yuan (around 2,900 U.S. dollars) each.
Li also established a cooperative for Dulong blanket making, attracting more than 170 women to learn traditional weaving techniques. They have developed 12 types of cultural and creative products, including shawls and scarves, and sold them worldwide through livestreaming, generating wealth for themselves.
"In the past, we only wove blankets for our own use. Now she teaches us to make the cultural and creative products and sell them. Last year, I earned more than 4,000 yuan (around 580 U.S. dollars) from weaving. I spent the money on my children's school fees and new appliances for my house," said Mu Jianying, member of the cooperative.
Li's dedication to both forestry and rural revitalization has earned her widespread recognition. In 2024, she was honored as model of ethnic solidarity and progress and received the title certificate from President Xi Jinping. She was also awarded the title of National March 8 Red-Banner Pacesetter, the highest honor presented by the All-China Women's Federation to the country's outstanding women, ahead of the International Women's Day observed on March 8.
Li said her achievements are the result of collective efforts.
"I often think that one person's strength is very limited, but the strength of a group is great. There are 195 ecological forest rangers like me protecting this land in the Dulongjiang Grand Canyon," she said.
As a female forest ranger, Li shared a message for women ahead of the International Women's Day.
"To mark the International Women's Day, I want to say to all my sisters: No matter what position we are in, as long as we are willing to endure hardship and work hard, we will surely weave our own rainbow," she said.
Forest ranger dedicated to guarding green mountains in Yunnan
Forest ranger dedicated to guarding green mountains in Yunnan
