BEIJING -- China will ask researchers in government funded projects to submit detailed reports of their work to ensure proper use of public money.

Reporting will be encouraged, but not mandatory, for research funded by central or local governments so that authorities can monitor progress and results, said Ye Yujiang of the Ministry of Science and Technology, on Thursday during webchat on the Chinese government's website, www.gov.cn.

The general office of the State Council last week published a circular formulated by the ministry which suggested that the reporting system should be in place in the science and technology sector by 2020.

Unlike academic essays or other research documents, the reports will record the entire process and results in detail, whether the research is successful or not, He Defang, director of the Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China, explained.

Standards for the reports have been formulated, and reports may include detailed information on methodology which may help others to reproduce results, He said. The system will also help with peer reviews.

An online information service was launched in March to pilot the program and to date, it has received over 16,000 reports with 12,000 accounts registered.

In response to intellectual property rights concerns, He said the authors may apply to defer publication of the reports for a period of three to five years to provide time to publish findings or file for patents.