Tianfu New Area's reforms stimulating market vitality

As a national demonstration zone and pioneer of the "park city" philosophy, Sichuan Tianfu New Area in Southwest China, has become a fertile ground for talent, enterprises and innovators thanks to its first-class business environment characterized by marketization, rule of law and internationalization.

Since the beginning of this year, the area in Sichuan province has been ramping up efforts to stimulate market vitality and social creativity through a series of key reforms.

In July, it issued the Action Plan for Innovative Reforms of Business Environment in Tianfu New Area, highlighting eight major initiatives of market access, government services, policy services, investment facilitation, new regulatory methods, legal guarantees, element aggregation and innovation capacity.

The increasingly optimized business environment has not only ignited the enthusiasm of market entities for innovation and entrepreneurship, but also attracted more leading enterprises. As of Oct 31, the total number of market entities in the area reached 126,849, up 24.26 percent year-on-year.

Innovative services

A local resident surnamed Luo recently experienced the one-stop service at the real estate registration center in Tianfu New Area and obtained his certificate by submitting electronic materials and going through video authentication online.

"In the past, I had to go to the real estate registration hall, but now, with the'internet and fingertip service', it took less than three minutes to complete," he said.

Applicants used to conduct on-site registration with lots of materials, which was both time-consuming and labor-intensive.Now, the real estate registration can be carried out in real-time through "internet plus blockchain" that integrates user identity authentication, the signing process and documents, according to staff members at the center.

The center provides user-friendly services such as form-filling guidance, free copying and printing, and online self-service for businesses and the public, with smart devices such as robots, touch-guiding screens and work stations.

More innovative methods are empowering the efficiency of services in Tianfu New Area.

For example, by continuously promoting the construction of smart taxation, "digital employees" are used to automatically examine and adjust the credit limit for invoices, further reducing the cost of invoice usage for taxpayers and shortening the time for tax processing.

Catering to the needs of enterprises, Tianfu New Area adopts various methods such as the commitment system to handle acceptance procedures, improve efficiency and reduce the waiting time for enterprises.

Tianfu New Area focuses on deepening the comprehensive transformation of existing hall windows by building the mechanism of guiding, assisting and handling on behalf of government services and extending the "assistance and handling on behalf" work at the grassroots level.

Self-service terminals are also being introduced into functional areas and buildings, expanding the coverage of the "15-minute government service convenience circle".

Tech transformation

As the key to building a nationally influential sci-tech innovation center in Sichuan, Tianfu New Area has always regarded the industrialization of scientific and technological achievements as an important means to cultivate leading industries and attract innovative talents.

On Nov 6, the No 1 Pavilion of the Chengdu Sci-Tech Ecological Island, located in the core area of the Western (Chengdu) Science City, was put into operation on the shore of Xinglong Lake in Tianfu New Area. It is a comprehensive service carrier boasting functions such as displaying innovative achievements and providing interactive on-site experiences.

During the release event for the Chengdu Sci-Tech Ecological Island's first scientific and technological achievements held on that day, the Chinese Academy of Sciences unveiled 211 high-quality scientific and technological achievements that were ready to be industrialized in such fields as electronic information, the digital economy, aviation, aerospace and low-carbon development.

"While gathering diverse innovative resources and technological services, the Chengdu Sci-Tech Ecological Island will become a platform for the exchange of talents and enterprises. This release event is just the beginning. In the future, activities such as lectures, technology brokers' training, roadshows and matchmaking meetings will be held to make this place a preferred destination for top scitech services, innovation and entrepreneurship," said Zhang Pengfei, the person in charge of the No 1 Pavilion of the Chengdu Sci-Tech Ecological Island.

The Chengdu Branch of CAS signed the Framework Agreement for Scientific and Technological Achievement Information Release and Innovation Project Incubation Service with the Chengdu Sci-Tech Ecological Island on Nov 6. It also inked the Framework Agreement for Scientific and Technological Achievement Transformation Service with Chengdu Capital Group and Sichuan Tianfu New Area Technology Venture Capital.

Those initiatives will further boost the establishment of a long-term cooperation mechanism among the Chengdu Sci-Tech Ecological Island, investment institutions and the Chengdu Branch of CAS.

At the event, a work station featuring the legal services and scitech achievement transformation in the Tianfu Central Legal Services District was established and will provide full lifecycle legal services for local companies and teams.

Cui Wenting, manager of the planning department of the government IT service business unit at Chengdu Information Technology of CAS, said that the Chengdu Sci-Tech Ecological Island serves as a base to spur the growth of science and technology.

Cui added that linked scientific and technological innovation services can enhance the deep integration of innovation chains, industry chains, capital chains and talent chains, and help companies flourish.

Sense of belonging

Tianfu New Area optimizes its service mechanism, solves the problems in business operations, promotes the continuous improvement of the business environment and enhances the sense of belonging and identity of entrepreneurs.

On Nov 8, Tianfu New Area held a series of activities, inviting senior executives of enterprises, experts, scholars, industry leaders and lawyers to visit areas such as the No 1 Pavilion of the Chengdu Sci-Tech Ecological Island, Sichuan Tianfu New Area Labor Dispute One-Stop Joint Mediation Center, Sichuan Tianfu New Area Real Estate Registration Center and Sichuan Tianfu New Area Government Affairs Service Center.

They focused on observing indicators such as inclusive and innovative practices, labor market supervision, property registration, government services and business registration.

As the bridge between the government and the market, business environment observers provide feedback to the government based on inspections, visits, research and discussions, reflecting the real market experience.

"Through today's visit and experience, I have seen many modern management methods and intelligent IT-backed service means. I feel that Tianfu New Area adheres to the service concept of 'people-oriented and customer first' for enterprises and the public. It has also strengthened our confidence and determination to stay in the area for development," said Mao Jinmei, a business environment observer.

"Today's visit made me feel the meticulousness of the business environment in Tianfu New Area, the thoughtfulness and care for the people in handling affairs, and also the tremendous power of technology. I hope Tianfu New Area will become even better," said another business environment observer, Zhang Bo.

Since the beginning of this year, Tianfu New Area has established a working mechanism of "one-season, one-coordination," regularly evaluating the progress and effectiveness of the reform, conducting process tracking, and rectifying shortcomings. This ensures that the business environment is implemented and truly reflected in the daily business operations of enterprises.

At the same time, Tianfu New Area innovates the government-enterprise model and has held five exchange events this year.

wangjinhui@chinadaily.com.cn