Shenzhen Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau has announced a package of 18 specific initiatives in a bid to put greater efforts into alleviating residents’ difficulties and help promote high-quality economic development as well as social harmony and stability.

The measures cover 11 important policies, such as promoting assistance policies for underprivileged families receiving minimum living allowances, and families that cannot meet basic life needs, as well as six projects like the construction of smart elderly care services and industrial cooperation platforms.

The 18 specific initiatives include strengthening support for disadvantaged groups and children living in difficulty, reinforcing assistance to vagrants and beggars, establishing and improving the long-term social care and assistance mechanism, strengthening basic services for the elderly, and optimizing social work services supplies and others.

According to the measures, Shenzhen has increased its monthly minimum living allowance to 1,365 yuan (US$202) per person.

The monthly social assistance for low-income residents has been increased to 2,048 yuan per person, while the monthly basic living allowance for the extremely impoverished has been lifted up to 2,184 yuan per person.

It is also proposed that the bureau will actively guide industry associations and chambers of commerce to help businesses in difficulties, serve the development of the city’s key industrial clusters, explore institutional mechanisms for charities to support scientific and technological innovation.

This year, the civil affairs departments at the municipal and district levels will invest no less than 490 million yuan in lottery public welfare funds for special groups, promote the implementation of 11 fixed investment projects in the civil affairs field, and build teams of professionals in elderly care and social work.

Meanwhile, the departments will spare no effort to promote a stable employment, continue to increase investment in civil affairs and help in the healthy development of social organizations and industrial and commercial enterprises.

“As a government agency that ensures people’s livelihood, the civil affairs bureau will strengthen the network for people’s livelihood, strictly implement the measures and promote the safe development of the economy,” said Xiong Ying, head of the city’s civil affairs bureau.