According to the State Council’s Institutional Reform Plan released on March 7, 2023, the State Council will establish a National Bureau of Data (“NBD”), and it will be administrated by the National Development and Reform Commission (“NDRC”). Pursuant to the announced responsibilities, the NBD will be in charge of “coordinating the construction of data infrastructure, integrating and sharing data resources, and promoting the planning and development of digital China, digital economy, and digital society.”

Certain responsibilities of the Cyberspace Administration of China (“CAC”) will be re-assigned to the NBD, including “formulating plans for construction of digital China, promoting the informatization of public services and social governance, promoting the construction of smart cities, coordinating the development and sharing of national important information resources, and promoting the interconnection of information resources across industries”.

Certain responsibilities of the NDRC, such as “promoting the development of the digital economy, implementing the national big data strategy, promoting the construction of data infrastructure, and promoting the layout and construction of digital infrastructure”, will also be re-assigned to the NBD.

Based on its establishment and re-assigned responsibilities, the NBD will become one of the most important agencies for developing data related policies, integrating data resources, and enforcing cybersecurity and data privacy protection.