Zhejiang Introduces Policy to Support Entrepreneurship Among College Graduates
On Thursday, the Department of Human Resources and Social Security of Zhejiang Province introduced a policy for subsidizing enterprising Chinese college graduates in starting a business. They will be able to borrow up to half a million yuan ($78,900) to start a business, and if it goes belly-up, the government will help pay at least 80% of their loans and 100% if it is less than 100,000 yuan.
The subsidy policy originated in 2015. According to the statistics of the Hangzhou Employment Management Service Center, last year, Hangzhou, the provincial capital of Zhejiang, issued a total of 1.056 billion yuan of business guarantee loans, benefiting 2,056 enterprises and 12,781 individuals.
In 2021, the per capita GDP of Zhejiang province reached 113,000 yuan, and the income of urban and rural residents ranked first among provinces and regions in China in consecutive 21 years and 37 years respectively.
“This year, there are more than 10 million college graduates in the country, which is a good opportunity for us. We must introduce and secure talented individuals for the development of the province,” said Chen Zhong, Vice Director at Zhejiang province’s Human Resources and Social Security Department.
Chen mentioned that new graduates coming to Zhejiang will now be able to obtain a “hukou”, or residency, with no strings attached. College graduates can also enjoy a living allowance and housing subsidies from 20,000 to 400,000 yuan if they work in Zhejiang.
College students who are engaged in entrepreneurship in housekeeping, old-age care and modern agriculture can enjoy a subsidy of 100,000 yuan from the local government. Other, regular workers in these fields can also get 10,000 employment subsidy per person per year for three consecutive years from the government.
In view of the rapid development of new and more flexible employment patterns, Zhejiang eased the household registration restrictions for employees to participate in old-age insurance and medical insurance in the province. The local government also required enterprises to give full play to the advantages of data technology to control working hours. Those who work continuously for more than 4 hours are now required to have a break.
