FUTIAN District has set up 12 liaison stations in communities populated with expats working and living in the district.

    The liaison stations have set up English service counters to help expats deal with things like residency and work permit applications, renting homes, and organizing regular activities for foreign residents to adapt to living in the city.

    At a salon Thursday, suggestions were collected from expats on how to improve public services.

    Futian, the city’s central business district and a company headquarters hub, has attracted an increasing number of expats to live and work in the district. Nearly 10,000 expatriate residents now call Futian home. Some are executives and professionals of World Top 500 enterprises and multinationals, and many others engage in culture, education and science exchanges.

    The first liaison office was set up in Donghai Community in September 2013, which is one of the largest expatriate enclaves in Shenzhen with Korean residents representing almost 70 percent of the expat population.

    Donghai Community is home to more than 1,000 expats from about 30 countries and regions. It now has 10 teams comprised of 240 foreigners from more than 20 countries and regions.

    The district is also trying to gain global recognition by becoming sister cities with an increasing number of cities and areas abroad. Futian District has already formed friendship-district relations with four districts in Japan, France, Russia and South Korea, as well as eight other cities around the globe.

    (Han Ximin)