Cutting red tape in Zhejiang entices investment

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Being bogged down in government red tape is something business people have come to expect as part of their daily lives in China’s big cities. But in Zhejiang province, several counties are making it easier to do business.

In Tonglu County in East China’s Zhejiang province, the local government upgraded its administrative services last year. It initiated a new system called “At Most One Visit”, which integrates several government departments and places them all under one roof.

Wang Jiahui , a businessman, spoke of his present and previous experience in dealing with the bureaucracy. “I heard it would take a matter of weeks to just get a license," he said. "You would need to run multiple errands and, any mistake in the document, you would have to redo it. Plus the queue was very long and everything was very inefficient.“

"But now I can apply online, sending in all the material, printing them out after receiving approval, and then a few procedures at the counter. It took me less than 15 minutes to get the business license. Much faster.”

CGTN Photo

The integration of online platforms and information technology has streamlined license processing. It has made Tonglu county – known for its leisure and health industries – even more attractive to investors like Wang Jian, who wants to invest in a sports stadium in the county with a capacity of 15,000 people.

“The documents required in the process are now reduced to 30 something from 160," he said. "The staff here help us out with these complicated documents and the government pays for it, which saves companies the commission fee. In addition, my employees no longer have to run across the city just to get the process completed, which saves us the labor input in this aspect.”

Wang says the reputation of an investor-friendly environment in Tonglu county is growing. The county government hopes this will drive growth in the local economy.

“Compared with other counties, Tonglu is located in a mountainous area, and so doesn't have a competitive edge in resources. The only way to attract investment is to improve our business environment. This reform has already seen a rise of about 27 percent in the number of registered companies in 2017,” says Huang Jianjun, director of “At Most One Visit” Reform Office in the county.

CGTN Photo

“Putting people first" and “Continuing the reform” – slogans on the screen of the service center – are important to the county government. They are indeed the kind of slogans you hear all the time, but in Tonglu, they've been put into practice.