Hefei to award 5 foreign expert studios every year

A foreign expert working in East China's Anhui province paints an opera mask to celebrate the traditional Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival on Sept 20, 2018. [Photo/VCG]

Hefei, capital of East China's Anhui province, recently announced plans to award three to five foreign expert studios every year to enhance the city's overall environment for foreign experts. 

Application is now open for enterprises, universities and research institutes with foreign expert support, with the first deadline fixed for Jan 22. 

The announcement sets specific requirements for the application. Foreign experts must have worked in the city for more than three months or be under long-term employment contracts. They must additionally be focused on providing enterprises with innovations in technology or management, helping to generate substantial economic yields, be working in high-end, rural revitalization or emerging industries, or serve at one of the country's only three National Comprehensive Science Centers. 

Foreign experts can work as individuals or teams, while their employers can set up one or more studios.

A foreign geological expert takes pictures of Chaohu county, Hefei city, Anhui province, May 20, 2018. [Photo/VCG]

The studios must also be in line with the experts' practical working needs, along with necessary living goods, service personnel, and specialized management systems. The government will conduct inspections of the studios to ensure standards are being met. 

Studios winning the municipal government's recognition will get a one-time financial support bonus of 100,000 yuan ($14,723) to improve their overall working environment. 

Employing new foreign experts to replace their predecessors will have no impact on a studio's earned recognition, while those not in operation or whose experts have health problems will find their honors removed.