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In recent years, an increasing number of high-end medical device companies have established their R&D headquarters and industrialization bases in Changping, Beijing. The Beijing Changping International Medical Device City—a park spanning more than 1.2 million square meters—is building a support system that covers the entire process from R&D, pilot production, and regulatory approval to manufacturing and market expansion, focusing on the key stages of commercializing medical device innovations.
The closed-door exchange session, themed “Evolution: Adapting with Resilience,” brought together investment promotion professionals from both within and outside the Yangtze River Delta, as well as companies currently seeking locations to establish operations. Participants discussed market changes and shared frontline experiences regarding industrial trends in the Yangtze River Delta, project matching, and practical investment promotion strategies.The event featured regional data and market-oriented investment promotion methods, as well as presentations from companies planning to expand their operations, real-world implementation case studies, and hands-on demonstrations of investment promotion web-based tools. Each segment had its own specific focus.
Counties are currently undergoing a round of decentralization. In July, Hunan Province released an implementation plan for “decentralizing authority to counties.” Thirteen provincial-level administrative licensing items have been delegated to economically strong counties, and it has been recommended that an additional 20 municipal-level authorities be concurrently delegated to the county level. Similarly, Sichuan, Guangdong, Henan, and Hubei have all taken similar steps in recent years. From the perspective of county-level investment promotion, this development warrants closer examination.
When investment promotion targets are assigned to state-owned enterprise platforms, the first thing that appears is a task list: how many companies to engage, how many leads to generate, and how many projects to advance. Once the goals are broken down, the team quickly gets into the swing of things. But for decision-makers, assigning targets to departments is only the first step in deploying the task. Investment promotion by state-owned enterprise platforms involves far more than just project matching. It requires determining the right industrial direction, understanding corporate needs, coordinating capital instruments, and identifying who will take over once a project is implemented.
Investment promotion conferences remain as bustling as ever. Figures on contract values, project counts, and project commencement rates were presented one after another. A review of investment promotion policies in the top 50 cities by GDP reveals a common trend. This year, only three cities—Zhengzhou, Nantong, and Quanzhou—have issued new policy documents specifically titled “Investment Promotion.” In addition, Shenzhen’s “Implementation Measures for Further Increasing the Attraction and Utilization of Foreign Investment” took effect this year. This article focuses on specialized investment promotion policies, innovative investment promotion plans, and the 15th Five-Year Plan outlines, incorporating all three types of documents into the analysis. A total of 63 policies were reviewed, while industrial directions were analyzed using the “15th Five-Year Plan” outlines of 50 cities.
Recently, the 2026 China Dental Valley Industry Development Conference was held as scheduled in Ziyang. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of Dental Valley, and there is a significant development worth noting. The park—which has already become the nation’s largest hub for the dental equipment and materials industry—announced the launch of its “second phase of development.” Ten years ago, 80 percent of China’s high-end dental equipment and materials relied on imports. Today, 434 “Made in Ziyang” dental products are exported to more than 100 countries and regions worldwide.
There’s a well-known adage in the investment promotion industry: good projects never wait. Projects can come knocking at any moment, but it takes a year or more to build a professional investment promotion team. This time lag has become a weak point for many counties’ investment promotion efforts. Qingyang County’s response was to stay one step ahead of the projects by first recruiting and training the right people. The “Running Ahead” Industrial Pioneer Training Camp, which recently concluded, was precisely this strategic first move. It featured 100 young officials, a 10-day intensive training program, and four rounds of selection, with county leaders evaluating the participants and entrepreneurs putting them through their paces.
According to data from ChinaVenture, as of the end of 2025, district- and county-level funds accounted for 44% of the total number of government funds nationwide. However, due to financial constraints, the capital size of these funds represented only 11.3% of the total. Accounting for nearly half of the total number but only 10% of the total capital—this is the true picture of government funds at the county level. Some time ago, a document issued by the General Office of the State Council quietly caused a stir in investment circles. The “Guiding Opinions on Strengthening Supervision, Preventing Risks, and Promoting the High-Quality Development of Private Equity Funds,” commonly known as the General Office’s “Document No. 54.”
A few days ago, the Ministry of Commerce, the National Development and Reform Commission, and the Ministry of Finance jointly issued the “Action Plan for Stabilizing, Promoting, and Optimizing Foreign Investment,” which consists of 15 measures across five areas. Today, draft amendments to the Government Procurement Law and the Bidding and Tendering Law were jointly submitted to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress for initial review. This marks the first time these two laws, which have been in effect for more than 20 years, have been amended simultaneously. Earlier, on June 16, at a symposium chaired by Zheng Zhejie, Director of the National Development and Reform Commission, the issue of “regulating local investment promotion activities” was raised, and this was discussed in the context of deepening the development of a unified national market.
“Since the Lunar New Year, I’ve been leaving the office at 10 p.m. almost every day, and I’ve even been working from home during my vacation.” This statement by the head of the Debt Management Division in a city in southern China provides the real backdrop to a recent report in the *Economic Observer*. In the same article, he made an even more poignant remark. “If I had a choice, I definitely wouldn’t want to work in the Debt Management Division. It’s a thankless job that requires a lot of effort, and the pressure is immense.” While this may seem like a candid confession from a grassroots finance official, the more you read, the more you realize: This division chief, who “wouldn’t want to work” in the Debt Management Division, has seen the other side of local debt resolution.
Under the new regulations, the government is continuously adjusting its approach to investment promotion. It’s not that there are no projects available; rather, local governments are seeking high-quality projects—ones that are either large enough in scale, technologically advanced with growth potential, or carry labels such as “specialized, refined, distinctive, and innovative” enterprises, listed companies, or foreign-invested enterprises. An investment promotion official at a park in the north told us that a project developer came forward with several conditions. He followed the proper procedures to submit the proposal, organized discussions, and went back and forth several times—only to hear nothing further. It’s not that he didn’t want the project; rather, under the new regulations, he wasn’t immediately sure what measures he could take to secure it. Just as localities across the country were widely voicing their difficulties, two incidents occurred yesterday—
There have been some changes in investment promotion. On the front lines are master’s degree holders from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, PhDs from “Double First-Class” universities, and researchers returning from abroad. Armed with their academic backgrounds and industry insights, they engage in investment promotion, sit at the negotiating table, and approach corporate decision-makers. Behind this lies professional competence that has been steadily elevated. Highly Educated Talent on the Front Lines of Investment Promotion If we look at several cities, we can observe a common trend: the front lines of investment promotion are becoming increasingly “academic” and “scholarly.”
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