浦东走向世界，吸引外资和人才 - 2021年07月28日

Roll up and come on! Pudong is welcoming talent and investors from across the world with open arms in an effort to drive high-quality growth.

Last week, China issued a guideline to support high-level reform and opening-up in Pudong, and build the area into a pioneer of socialist modernization. Accordingly, there should be a larger talent pool, Pudong Party Secretary Weng Zuliang said.

Talent constitutes a primary resource.

"We have to get them, make them stay and help their careers take off," Weng said in a city government press conference held today.

New favorable policies to attract global talent are now high on the government agenda, he said, underlining the role of talent in elevating the new area's development to the next level.

Over the past few years, Pudong has pioneered a number of policies, such as the first residence permit in the free trade zone, the first work permit to foreign students with bachelor's degrees and the first work permit for foreigners starting businesses.

Next, Pudong will introduce more policies to make life and work more convenient for foreign talent, such as a green channel to get permanent residence permits and relaxing employment restrictions, Weng said.

Pudong will also strive for leeway to review applications for work and residence permits, improve certification for international professional qualifications and try other institutional reforms, he added.

In addition to favorable policies, Pudong's dynamic business environment makes it a magnet for global talent, Weng said.

Pudong plays a leading role in the city's development into an international economic, financial, trade, shipping and tech-innovation center.

It has 1,125 financial institutions, 373 regional headquarters of multinational companies and clusters of six key industries – aerospace, innovative drugs, future vehicles, data ports, smart manufacturing and domestically developed chips.

"In Pudong, professionals in every walk of life can find places to show their talents and build their careers," he said. "We will create a liveable and business-friendly Pudong."

As part of its evolution, Pudong is strengthening its headquarters economy. Last December, it launched the Global Operation Program, giving multinational companies policy boosts to upgrade regional headquarters for global operators. Now, 93 companies are on the name list of the program.

Another program, Global Institution Investor Cluster, is in the works. It is designed to attract more leading institutional investors to operate businesses in Pudong and increase the scale of international investment.