China to renovate 15 million houses in shantytown areas

The State Council executive meeting, presided over by Premier Li Keqiang on May 24, decided to renovate 15 million more houses in shantytown areas from 2018 to 2020.

According to the meeting, more funds and land will be in place to support the undertaking, which will benefit around 100 million people living in poor conditions.

Details: >> China to accelerate shantytown redevelopment

Further cuts in vocational qualifications

The State Council executive meeting on May 24 also decided to set up a national catalogue of vocational qualifications, continue to reduce items and list the remainder in the catalogue.

Meanwhile, the meeting also decided to set up entry qualifications for occupations related to public security, health, and life and property security.

Details: >> Further cuts urged in vocational qualifications

Cargo clearance to be simplified

The State Council executive meeting on May 24 decided to accelerate the “single-window system”, a trade facilitation policy that will enable faster and easier cargo clearance.

An information-sharing platform will also be created to reduce the number of documents required for traders and help customs declarations, examinations and tax payments go paperless.

Details: >> China to simplify cargo clearance

Further support to private healthcare services

According to a circular released by the State Council, China will encourage development of diverse private healthcare services, in an attempt to meet people’s growing demand for healthcare and regulate the private medical market.

More efforts will be made to develop general medical services, traditional Chinese medicine, frontier medicine, and personalized services.

By 2020, private healthcare services will be substantially improved with better technology, services, and reputation.

Details: >> China to further support private healthcare services

National campaign against unsafe school buses

The Ministry of Education asked local authorities to scrutinize school buses of primary and middle schools and kindergartens, to avert potential risks.

Vehicles, routes, and road conditions will be checked and recorded, and drivers without certificates will be dismissed.

Measures to promote health tourism

According to a document jointly released by the Health and Family Planning Commission, National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Finance, National Tourism Administration, and State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, China will build a group of destinations for international health travel by 2020.

A complete service system for health tourism will be built by 2030.

Good education resources more widely available

The Ministry of Education said in a recent document that the nation will expand coverage of good education resources based on a balanced development of compulsory education.

The measure will help further reduce gaps among schools and between rural and urban areas.