NEW NATIONAL ENERGY ADMINISTRATOR

Zhang Jianhua， former President of China National Petroleum Corp. （CNPC）， the nations largest oil and gas producer， was appointed director of the National Energy Administration （NEA） on November 14.

The NEA， initiated in 2008， is formulating and implementing the countrys energy development strategies， promoting energy system reform and supervising and managing the energy market.

Zhang has over 30 years experience in the petroleum and petrochemical industries. After graduating from university in 1986， he joined the Shanghai Gaoqiao Petrochemical Company which became the Sinopec Shanghai Gaoqiao Petrochemical Co. Ltd. in 2000. Zhang became president of the company that same year.

He became vice president of China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation， or Sinopec， Chinas biggest oil refi ner， in 2003 and assumed a number of other important managerial positions at the corporation until 2016.

Zhang was appointed general manager and deputy secretary of the Party committee of CNPC in July 2016 and president of the company in June.

Saving Parents From Being Overcharged

Legal Daily November 9

Afterschool training institutions should not charge fees for more than three months in one go， according to the guideline published by the State Council in August. But in spite of the regulation， its still common for training institutions to collect fees well in advance， sometimes even a whole years.

This practice of prepaid tuition fees has not only increased parents financial burdens， more importantly， if the institutions shut down abruptly， it is hard for parents to get their money back. Moreover， the institutions get interest on the money collected or simply use the money as capital to expand their business. Therefore， its necessary to strengthen regulations for such training institutions. However， the guideline has not produced the desired effect.

To curb the practice， parents awareness of risks should be improved and they should refuse to prepay tuition fees. They may also file a complaint with relevant government departments when they are asked to pay fees for more than three months.

In reality， its hard to supervise training institutions as many of them are hidden in residential compounds. In spite of this， the authorities should take effective measures to regulate the market， protect parents interests and reduce students burdens.

North Chinas Green Screen

Outlook Weekly November 12

Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region is an important ecological screen for north China， and even the whole country. Building a green great wall to ensure Chinas ecological security is one of the priorities of the autonomous region.

The largest ecological function zone in north China， Inner Mongolia has a variety of landscapes， including forests， grasslands， wetlands， rivers and lakes. In recent years， the regions environment has improved， with its forest and grassland area having increased and desert reduced.

However， it still faces a number of challenges in ecological preservation.

For instance， the region faces severe water shortage with the number of lakes with an area of more than 1 square km dropping from 427 in 1987 to 145 in 2010. In addition to a lack of precipitation， huge water consumption in agricultural and industrial production has worsened the water shortage. Excessive use of fertilizers has damaged the soil and affected the growth of grass， accelerating desertifi cation.

The local government encourages planting trees on grassland as they can get more subsidies for trees than by growing grass.However， the trees they plant often have a low survival rate as they have a high water consumption rate. Also， to treat wetlands， some areas have planted a large number of a single tree species. This practice may damage biodiversity and endanger the survival of certain animals.

Experts suggest taking the regions water resources and weather conditions into consideration in future ecological projects.

Consumers Right to Roast

Yanzhao Evening News November 6

Recently， a Beijing university student， who was unsatisfi ed with a cake she had bought on a meal-ordering platform， gave the vendor a negative rating. It led to the vendor attacking her online.

Consumers have the right to give a negative rating to online vendors. The Law on Protection of Consumer Rights and Interests says they have the right to supervise products and services. Their ratings serve as a reference for other consumers to shop online. Its not only the supervisory departments responsibility but also the e-commerce platforms to protect consumers right to give negative ratings.

The E-Commerce Law， which will be enacted in January， stipulates that e-commerce platforms should allow consumers to comment on the products online. The platforms are prohibited from deleting the comments. If they still do so， they will be subject to a maximum fi ne of 500，000 yuan （$71，927）. Therefore， e-commerce platforms should show consumerscomments truthfully and objectively and refrain from deleting unfavorable ratings.

All comments by consumers based on their shopping experiences deserve respect， as long as they are not intended to insult or defame the vendors. In order to protect consumers， e-commerce platforms may make consumers accounts invisible to vendors.

RECORD BREAKER

Chinese swimmer Xu Jiayu won gold at the mens 100-meter backstroke at the Tokyo leg of the 2018 FINA Swimming World Cup on November 11. Xu fi nished the race in 48.88 seconds， setting a new world record. This was Xus third gold at the event， after winning the mens 200-meter and 50-meter backstroke. Born in Wenzhou City of east Chinas Zhejiang Province， the 23-year-old started swimming under the encouragement of his mother who used to be a professional swimmer. Xu entered the Zhejiang provincial swimming team in 2008.

He won silver at the mens 100-meter backstroke at the Rio Olympics in 2016. A year later， he won gold at the mens 100-meter backstroke at the FINA World Championships. He also won gold for the mens 100-meter backstroke at the Tokyo stop of the FINA Swimming World Cup last year.

“China is ready to expand bilateral exchanges and cooperation in the areas of trade， investment， production capacity， and education within the Belt and Road Initiative framework to help Papua New Guinea （PNG） achieve sustainable development and realize common development in this region.”

Xue Bing， Chinas Ambassador to PNG， told Xinhua News Agency about President Xi Jinpings state visit to the country on November 15-16， the first by a Chinese president since the two sides established diplomatic relations in 1976

“Connectivity is the name of the game in this century as this is imperative for trade and commerce in todays interconnected world.”

Tehmina Janjua， Foreign Secretary of Pakistan， at a seminar in Islamabad on November 13， highlighting the vitality the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor had provided to Pakistan and the region

“Both state-owned and private enterprises should be treated equally and fairly... and there should never be any discrimination in regard to their ownership.”

Guo Shuqing， Chairman of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission， vowing to step up credit support for the private sector in a recent interview with Xinhua

“The rapid expansion of the recreational vehicle （RV） industry is driven by consumption upgrading. People are becoming wealthier and are more willing to spend on new products to improve their quality of life.”

Feng Biao， who works with a Tianjin-based RV sales company， in an interview with Xinhua News Agency at the China Tourism Industries Exposition that opened in Tianjin on November 9