Governments are tasked with bringing fair and efficient services to the public. Unfortunately, providing transparency and accountability often results in a reduction in efficiency and effectiveness or vice versa. Governments are usually forced to choose to improve one at the cost of the other. On rare occasions, technology comes along that enables governments to improve fairness and efficiency. The move from paper-based record keeping to computer databases was one such technology. The internet was another. Blockchain is the next. Like the internet before it, blockchain will not only improve how the public interacts with government services, it will have broad …
There is an old saying in China: “Building the road is the first step to becoming rich.” Asian countries use infrastructure to boost the economy, and China is probably the most aggressive one — its annual average infrastructure spending is one of the highest at 8.3% of its gross domestic product from 2010 to 2015, according to data from Statista. In the last two decades, China has built the most highways and high-speed railways, and it has now decided to extend the infrastructure development to a digital dimension. China’s “new infrastructure” plan includes blockchain technology, 5G, artificial intelligence and cloud …
The ongoing coronavirus pandemic is transforming blockchain companies, and its impact is not always negative for the blockchain industry. Amid the latest coronavirus crisis-fueled changes, China is taking another step toward blockchain adoption to officially recognize industry jobs. China’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, or MOHRSS, is the ministry responsible for national labor policies and regulations. Recently, they have added blockchain-related jobs to a list of officially recognized jobs. New occupation types are officially introduced to promote employment amid COVID-19 According to a May 11 statement by the MOHRSS, blockchain-focused professions, like tech developers, engineers, and analysts, are …
The People’s Bank of China, or PBoC, Financial Technology Committee held its first meeting of the year this week. During the meeting, the central bank’s deputy governor, Fan Yifei, urged that the country’s blockchain adoption strategy be accelerated. According to a report released by Sina on May 13, the bank’s deputy governor met with both PBoC officials and the heads of their affiliated financial companies. During the talks, Fan highlighted the importance of the blockchain and fintech industries, openly seeking to ensure that the country’s adoption plan will be successfully implemented by its established 2021 deadline. Digitization of the national …
The mayor of Loudi, a city in China’s Hunan province, has characterized blockchain technology as a powerful “weapon” that can effectively tackle crime. At a meeting of Loudi’s Municipal Public Security Bureau on Aug. 10, Mayor Yang Yiwen responded to reports on the progress of a trial blockchain project that is currently being conducted by the bureau and a local technology firm. The project combines blockchain technology with multi-party computing and big data to improve trusted data exchange and information traceability across a collaborative network. This network unites telecommunication network operators, banks and public data from various municipal departments, such …