BEIJING, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- Senior Chinese official Li Changchun has praised the artistic achievements and structural reform of a provincial performance troupe at the forefront of China's cultural reform program.

    The Jilin Song and Dance Troupe had made positive progress after its reform in its performance and management system, said Li, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee.

    Li was speaking at a show on Thursday evening that featured folk songs and dances of northeastern Jilin Province.

    The troupe, which participated in the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics, turned from unit under sole state ownership into a joint-venture company with the government as the biggest shareholder in 2006.

    After the reform, the provincial government stopped bankrolling the troupe, which became responsible for contracting their own business and responsible for their revenues.

    The central government has been implementing reforms of state enterprises over the past two decades, restructuring enterprises under sole state ownership into joint-venture companies to improve efficiency.