China is to introduce more measures to support rural start-ups in its bid to promote rural vitalization. At a press briefing on Friday, the Information Office of the State Council talked about the challenges facing returning migrants and the policies it was implementing to help their transition back into rural life. CGTN Rory Coen has more.

Empowered by initiatives pushing entrepreneurship and innovation, there is a growing number of migrant workers, college students and veteran soldiers starting businesses in rural areas.

This will open a new channel for employment, allowing more resources, such as talent, technology, and capital, to flow into rural areas.

ZHANG YIZHEN, VICE MINISTER MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCES AND SOCIAL SECURITY "In order to guarantee these migrant workers can gain the maximum benefits of returning home to start businesses, the government has implemented a series of policies, such as bolstering the financing services and land-use support. New financial institutions such as village or township banks will be established. More investments will be made to upgrade rural infrastructure.”

However, there are challenging issues to be addressed. Progress among regions is uneven, and policies still need to be improved, better publicized and fully implemented.

With the upcoming Chinese Spring Festival, there will be a huge amount of migrant workers returning home to see their families. But, some of them will need to postpone their vacation due to the unpaid wages.

ZHANG YIZHEN, VICE MINISTER MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCES AND SOCIAL SECURITY "The total unpaid wages in 2017 shows a clear decrease by 38.8%, compared with the previous year. We will strengthen the system examinations and evaluations. Activities improving workers' awareness have been held. We hope by holding these activities, we can enable the workers to realize the importance of safeguarding their rights and fighting for their wages.”

With the full implementation of the supporting policies, migrant workers will be able to effectively set up their own business. Supporting migrant workers that return home is a significant driving force to strengthen the rural vitalization strategy and to realize people's aspirations for a better life. CGTN, Rory Coen, BEIJING.