Zhang Yu, Chen Siqi

JeniZhang13@163.com

SHENZHEN has consistently endeavored to cultivate a premier business environment, striving to become preferred global investment destination, according to Guo Ziping, director general of the Shenzhen Municipal Development and Reform Commission. Guo emphasized that the optimization of the business environment is the foremost priority in this pursuit.

Guo gave a rundown of Shenzhen’s efforts in creating a first-class business environment at a press conference on high-quality development organized by the Information Office of the Shenzhen Municipal Government on Saturday.

According to Guo, Shenzhen has launched over 1,000 reform measures to optimize a market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized business environment. Shenzhen has won the title of City with Best Reputation for Business Environment in China for the fourth consecutive year in a survey conducted by the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce.

Statistics show that as of the end of 2023, Shenzhen had over 4.2 million registered business entities, a total of 561 listed companies, over 24,000 high-tech enterprises, and over 8,600 specialized and sophisticated enterprises that produce new and unique products.

In addition, the city has 742 national “little giant” companies that focus on a niche market and master key technologies with strong innovation capacity, with that number ranking among the top in Chinese large and medium-sized cities.

“Shenzhen will align its standards with international rules, focus on the concerns of business entities, accelerate the building of a national pilot city for an innovative business environment, and promote the business environment to a higher level,” Guo stated, adding that Shenzhen strongly supports investment and business growth.

The heads of the city’s talent affairs bureau, education bureau, urban administration and law enforcement bureau, and government services and data management bureau also introduced the city’s endeavors in becoming a magnet for talent, improving educational resources, creating an enjoyable and livable environment, and delivering more efficient government services, respectively, at the press conference.

At another press conference on high-quality growth Friday, Zhang Lin, director general of the Shenzhen Municipal Science, Technology, and Innovation Commission, said Shenzhen is poised to enhance its status as a global hub for industrial tech innovation by prioritizing six key areas to foster scientific and technological innovation.

These initiatives encompass expediting the convergence of innovation, industry, finance, and talent chains as well as expanding support for enterprises to amplify their R&D investments, Zhang said.

Zhang revealed that the city’s social investment in research and development (R&D) constitutes 5.81% of its GDP, with local enterprises contributing significantly and accounting for 94.9% of total R&D investment. Shenzhen has been steadily crafting a comprehensive innovative ecosystem, leveraging scientific and technological advancements to propel industrial innovation, Zhang said.