Steady governance always prioritizes the welfare of the people. From employment services delivered directly to one's doorstep to subsidized meal canteens for senior citizens within communities; from equitable and high-quality basic education to continuously upgraded smart healthcare solutions—these developments have defined Nantong's approach since its 13th Party Congress. The city has steadfastly adhered to a people-centered development philosophy, treating the public's "key daily concerns" as "matters of paramount importance." By persistently focusing on employment, entrepreneurship, education, healthcare, elderly care, and childcare, and addressing these issues one by one, year after year, Nantong has delivered a substantial and heartening report card on improving people's livelihoods.
Deepening Employment and Entrepreneurship to Solidify the Foundation for Shared Prosperity
"Human resources and social security departments at all levels have provided us with extensive support, including applying for training course codes, declaring talent introduction subsidies, and connecting us with project cooperation resources," remarked Zhu Pengpeng, principal of Rudong County Honglingyang Vocational Skills Training School, on September 8th. As a young returnee entrepreneur, he leveraged Nantong's supportive entrepreneurial policies to launch his career in his hometown. In October 2021, the Rudong County Honglingyang Vocational Skills Training School Co., Ltd. was established in Yangkou Town, a joint venture involving Fujian-based investors, leading scientific and technological talents, and local Nantong enterprises. The school's renovation is now nearly complete, and upon reaching full production capacity, the project is projected to generate annual sales revenue of approximately 150 million yuan and create over 150 jobs.
Employment remains the cornerstone of people's well-being. Over the past five years, Nantong has coordinated efforts in employment and entrepreneurship, implementing a comprehensive set of policy measures to continuously strengthen the foundation of its job market. The city has cumulatively added 556,500 new urban jobs, supported 84,700 urban and rural workers in successfully starting their own businesses, and assisted 113,100 individuals facing employment difficulties. These initiatives have earned commendations and incentives from the provincial government, and the city's public employment service standardization pilot project was rated "excellent" by the National Standards Administration.
Policies to support businesses and stabilize employment have been implemented with precision. The city adopted a "no-application, direct enjoyment" model, disbursing 60,049,500 yuan in one-time enterprise expansion subsidies to 8,427 companies, facilitating the recruitment of 40,033 college graduates and young people. Furthermore, 1.469 billion yuan in stable job retention rebates was distributed to 71,000 employers, benefiting over 950,000 employees. By streamlining processes to allow companies to receive subsidies simply by confirmation without extra steps, the city issued 286 million yuan in work-based training subsidies and 42.105 million yuan in one-time retention training subsidies, effectively reducing business labor costs.
Employment security for key groups has been robust. Focusing on college graduate employment, Nantong developed a recruitment framework combining online and offline channels and exploring both local and external talent pools, organizing intensive online recruitment drives and offline job fairs. Since 2021, a total of 15.5085 million yuan in job-seeking and entrepreneurship subsidies has been provided to 10,339 unemployed college graduates facing difficulties; 17.5734 million yuan in social insurance subsidies has been granted to 502 small and micro enterprises, encouraging them to hire 5,609 college graduates. The city has also established 11 city-level standardized informal job markets with regional characteristics and 14 municipal-level labor service brands, driving employment for over 502,800 people and generating an average annual labor income increase exceeding 7.38 billion yuan. Additionally, 8,663 public welfare positions were developed, benefiting 113,100 individuals with employment difficulties.
The multiplier effect of entrepreneurship on employment continues to be released. Nantong introduced two policies to support enterprises and benefit the public, strengthening entrepreneurial support for key groups such as unemployed individuals, veterans, and young university students. Initiatives like the "Entrepreneurship Four Seasons" themed activities and the establishment of the "Entrepreneurship in Nantong" service brand have been promoted. Four provincial-level entrepreneurship demonstration bases and 42 outstanding provincial-level university student entrepreneurship projects were recommended. Jingcheng Science and Technology Park became the city's first national-level entrepreneurship incubation demonstration base. Since 2021, the city has conducted entrepreneurship training for 65,300 people.
The vocational skills training system has been continuously enhanced. Nantong was among the first in the province to incorporate new occupations, such as industrial robot system operators and ride-hailing drivers, into the training, assessment, and subsidy scope for vocational skills training certificates. By deeply integrating online theoretical knowledge with offline practical exercises, the city successfully conducted training courses across 50 different job types spanning 2,351 class sessions, with approximately 90,200 trainees participating. For the first time, high-quality enterprises were included in the recognition scope of public practical training bases. The urban area organized practical training for 9,348 university students, distributing 10.1303 million yuan in related subsidies.
Safety net guarantees have been solid and robust. Since 2021, the city has cumulatively paid out 3.165 billion yuan in unemployment insurance to 270,000 unemployed individuals and 792 million yuan in medical and maternity insurance premiums on their behalf. Additionally, 90.69 million yuan in unemployment assistance funds was provided to 26,000 unemployed individuals. These measures to stabilize employment and increase income have significantly bolstered residents' confidence in their livelihoods. Over the past five years, the city's per capita disposable income has grown from 46,882 yuan to 57,242 yuan. Broken down by residence, urban residents' per capita disposable income rose from 57,289 yuan to 68,293 yuan, marking a 19.2% increase, while rural residents' income grew from 29,134 yuan to 36,972 yuan, a 26.9% increase.
Optimizing Public Services to Enhance Accessibility and Quality
"Why does the little robot recognize the teacher but not you?" This question from teacher Chen Jianan kicked off the first Artificial Intelligence general knowledge class of the new semester at the Experimental School Affiliated to Nantong Middle School. During the lesson, examples like "Turing Test" and "Facial Recognition" captured the students' attention, leading to lively group discussions and hands-on activities that continued even after the class ended. This scene epitomizes Nantong's commitment to high-quality education development.
The balance and high quality of public services are the core support for people's well-being. Over the past five years, Nantong has focused on the areas of education, healthcare, elderly care, and childcare that matter most to its citizens, continuously expanding, upgrading, and ensuring universal access to public services. This ensures that residents in both urban and rural areas can enjoy high-quality services in their own neighborhoods, enhancing the overall warmth and quality of livelihood security across all dimensions.
Investing in education to enrich people's lives has been a priority. Over the past five years, Nantong has diligently pursued building a strong educational city, continuously optimizing the urban-rural educational landscape. The city has promoted inclusive development of preschool education, balanced and high-quality compulsory education, and distinctive development of regular high schools. By empowering development through education and deepening educational modernization, the educational ecosystem has consistently improved. Since the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the city has invested a total of 130.023 billion yuan in education, a 39.56% increase compared to the 13th Five-Year Plan period. A total of 55 primary and secondary schools have been newly built or renovated, adding 83,000 quality student places. Basic education quality continues to lead the province. Counties including Rudong, Hai'an, Rugao, Qidong, Haimen, Chongchuan, and Tongzhou have been recognized as national-level counties for inclusive preschool education. Haimen, Tongzhou, Hai'an, Rugao, Rudong, and Qidong have achieved national-level status for balanced and high-quality compulsory education. The city boasts 3 provincial-level high-quality high schools, 3 schools approved for high-quality high school development, and 8 schools approved for high-quality characteristic high school development. Nantong has promoted the integrated construction of ideological and political education across primary, secondary, and tertiary levels, implemented the student physical fitness enhancement plan and the "2-15 Special Action," and advanced the "One School One Feature, One Student Multiple Skills" initiative, basically achieving universal art education where every school has its own characteristics, every class has clubs, and every student participates in projects.
Educational equity illuminates the path for students' growth. The city has implemented policies ensuring children of migrant workers have equal access to schooling, achieving a 100% enrollment rate in public schools and a 100% compulsory education enrollment rate for children with disabilities. Among the city's schools, 611 primary and secondary schools and kindergartens are located in townships, accounting for 52% of the total; 92 relatively small compulsory education schools have fewer than 200 students, 66 of which are in townships. Education continues to empower Nantong's development. Over the past five years, the city has fostered integrated development and collaborative innovation with Nantong University. The construction of Southeast University's Nantong campus has received official approval from the Ministry of Education. Nantong Health Vocational College has started recruiting students for higher vocational programs, and Nantong Industry and Trade Technician College successfully applied to become a teaching site of the Provincial Joint Vocational College. The city has also introduced implementation plans for policies to increase employment for college graduates and vigorously held "Tong Talent Returns to Nantong" events, building a "reservoir" of talent for the city's development.
Governance efficiency in education has continued to improve. Nantong has innovatively implemented "Four Full Management" – covering all targets, all time periods, all spaces, and all fields – to promote meticulous management in schools. All schools in the city have broadband access of 100 Mbps or higher. Smart campus construction has been completed in 550 schools, accounting for 98.04% of the total, accelerating the digitalization of education.
Healthcare in Nantong has improved in quality and effectiveness, safeguarding public health. Over the past five years, the city's average life expectancy has reached 83.68 years, and residents' health literacy level has risen to 43.42%. Five cases of "Beautiful Hospital" construction were rated as national benchmarks. The innovative experience in medical-preventive integration was selected as a national model. The national pilot program of the Million Reduction in Disability Project – focusing on stroke prevention and disability reduction – was initiated in Nantong, making the city the nation's first pilot prefecture-level city for this initiative. The national conference on Healthy China construction has been held in Nantong for two consecutive years. The healthy industry is developing rapidly with strong momentum, building a solid defense line for public health. As these projects take effect, public services are rapidly transitioning from merely existing to being high-quality, with convenience and warmth increasingly integrated into citizens' daily lives.
Focusing on Care for the Elderly and Children to Enhance the Happiness Baseline
The well-being of the elderly and children affects millions of households, and these practical projects are central to public expectations. Around 10:00 AM yesterday, Fan Jiang, head of the Dasheng Jiachu Community Canteen (Gaojia store) in Chongchuan District, began packing boxed lunches in preparation for the lunchtime rush. More than twenty dishes were on display: savory braised lion's head meatballs, tender steamed sea bass, and braised pork knuckles, with the latter even thoughtfully labeled "Choose with caution if you have high blood lipids." Since its launch in August this year, this "neighborhood canteen," known for its affordable prices and delicious food, has become a preferred dining spot for many nearby seniors, serving an average of about 130 customers daily. "It's enough for me and my granddaughter. It's very convenient," said Grandma Li from Yongyi Jiayuan, who spent 22 yuan on a meal of pineapple sweet and sour pork, green bean fried rice, braised lion's head meatballs, and pickled cabbage stewed with potatoes shortly after 11:20 AM. Over ten minutes later, Mr. Wang and his wife Ms. Wei drove over specifically to have lunch. Ms. Wei smiled, "The ingredients are fresh, the prices are reasonable, and it's extremely convenient for the elderly. I hope to see more such canteens near our home."
Data from the "Seventh National Census" shows that Nantong has 2.3187 million registered residents aged 60 and above, with 90% of them choosing to age in place within their homes and communities. Over the past five years, Nantong has actively responded to population aging by promulgating and implementing the "Nantong Regulations on Elderly Care Services," dynamically updating the guiding directory list of basic elderly care services, and issuing special policies such as the "Care for Nantong" three-year action plan to enhance comfortable dining services, the high-quality development of rural elderly care services, and the construction of an elderly care service talent team. Addressing the urgent needs of the elderly, the city has further deepened the development of home and community-based elderly care, weaving a tighter network of services and concentrating efforts on building a higher-quality, more sufficient, and more balanced elderly care service system. Nantong has consistently included the construction of community meal assistance points for the elderly in its key practical livelihood projects, employing a flexible and diversified approach through the renovation of existing elderly care facilities, cooperation with social catering enterprises, and moderate new construction. The city has established a total of 356 community meal assistance points for seniors, making elderly meal services convenient, accessible, affordable, and reliable. Concurrently, 40 comprehensive street-level elderly care service centers and 94 rural township-level regional elderly care service centers have been built at various locations, achieving full coverage of community elderly care service networks. At the village and community level, 45 embedded community "elderly home" facilities and 270 demonstrative rural mutual-aid elderly care neighborhood points have been established, meeting the diverse home and community-based elderly care needs of the public.
To meet the childcare needs of infants and toddlers, the city's supply of childcare services has continued to expand, effectively alleviating the difficulties families face in raising young children. Currently, 385 kindergartens in the city have added nursery classes, and 5 enterprises and public institutions have opened childcare services for their employees. The number of childcare slots per 1,000 people has reached 4.8. All secondary and higher-level general hospitals in the city have established pediatric outpatient clinics. Public welfare projects such as routine screening for scoliosis in children are carried out regularly, providing comprehensive protection for the health of children and adolescents.
With harmonious governance and thriving competition across all sectors, the warmth of improved livelihoods spreads throughout the city. By continuously enhancing people's well-being in the course of high-quality development, "a happy life" has indeed become the most heartening hallmark of this city.