Twenty provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities in China have instituted a news spokesperson system, said Wang Guogqing, deputy director of the State Council Information Office (SCIO).

The official delivered the speech Tuesday at the spokesperson training class in Hefei, east China's Anhui Province.

He said among the 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government, 23 has made plans to set up the spokesperson system, and 20 have established the system.

Wang said press conferences have become a major way to release Chinese government information. In 2004, he said, SCIO held 160 press conferences, the departments of State Council held 270, and the local governments, 460.

"Domestic and foreign media have spoken highly of China's news releasing, saying the press conferences are very informative and authoritative," said Wang.

More than 120 spokespersons and liaison persons of Anhui Province participated in the five-day training course.

The training course, sponsored by the SCIO and the Anhui Provincial Government, invited experts, noted journalists, news officials and head of foreign consulting firm in China to give lectures to the spokespersons from 17 municipal governments of Anhui Province.

It is the first time for the province to organize such a training course for its spokespersons, according to an official with the Information Office of Anhui Provincial Government. Participants said they become more confident and skillful after receiving the training."

The spokesperson system, part of the socialist political civilization, is important for making government work more transparent and satisfying the people's right to know and participate in the province's administration," said Zhang Ping, deputy secretary of the CPC committee of Anhui Province.

China officially established the spokesperson system in 1983, and Anhui was one of the first provinces to adopt it. In the past two years, China has run three national training programs for government spokespersons including hundreds from central government departments and local governments, in September and November 2003 and May 2004.