Xiamen, a vibrant coastal city in east China's Fujian Province, is making amateur photographers out of the numerous tourists who come to visit its culturally rich sites and gaze at its beautiful open skies.
Known for its scenic beaches and warm climate, there is no shortage of photogenic scenery in Xiamen. Recently, the city has even set up a leisure area just down the road from its international airport, giving visitors an up-close view of the planes taking off.
"The space has only been open to the public for two or three months, making it a fresh destination for us to capture photos of planes," said Ms Lan, a resident.
On the city's Gulangyu island, famous for its varied architecture and multicultural history, many shops have integrated cultural tourism and consumer experiences to attract tourists.
One such example is an express delivery station that boasts a creatively designed decorative wall at its entrance and a promotional wall highlighting "Good Things of Gulangyu," allowing tourists to take photos and learn about local specialties while sending their packages.
"This is a unique store that truly caught my attention. I came in and found out it is an express delivery station," said Chen Yicong, a visitor to the island.
"This service is our new attempt to allow young tourists to visit and take photos [while sending packages]. When they need to send luggage or items they have purchased during their travel, they can stop by here, lighten their load and then travel light," said Lan Wenbin, a staff member at the shop.
Coastal Chinese city enchants camera-happy visitors with modern sights, cultural attractions
China will take more effective measures to improve people's wellbeing, especially in education, healthcare, and social security, an official said Thursday in Beijing at a press conference on the interpretation of this year's government work report, which was submitted to the national legislature for deliberation earlier in the day.
Shen Danyang, head of the government work report drafting team and director of the State Council Research Office, said centering on enhancing educational equity and quality, the report made arrangements for education at all educational stages and of all types.
"Regarding preschool education, the policy of free education in the year prior to entering primary school will continue to be implemented this year, which is commonly referred to as free admission to the senior class of kindergartens. So, how can the income reduction of kindergartens be addressed? Subsidies will be provided by both the central and local governments, with the central government taking the lion's share. This year, the funds allocated to support the development of preschool education will increase significantly by 37.8 percent to ensure the implementation of the beneficial policy," he said.
Regarding senior high school education, Shen said the report stated that the supply of regular senior high school places will be increased,
Specifically, for areas with a continuous net inflow of population, a number of regular high schools will be planned and constructed on an annual basis. For regions with a temporary shortage of school places, priority will be given to the renovation and expansion of existing teaching buildings, student dormitories and canteens, he said.
Shen said the report put forward many supportive measures in healthcare.
"For instance, it urged efforts to strengthen coordination in drug use at the grassroots level, which mean improving the list of essential drugs, and optimizing the channels for drug supply and drug use coordination between upper- and lower-level medical and health institutions to make it more convenient for the public to use drugs at their doorstep. Besides, the report has made arrangements for supporting the development of innovative drugs for the third consecutive year. This year, China will strengthen the coordination of supportive policies in an all-round way, further address issues such as the barriers facing innovative drugs entering hospitals, and better meet the diverse medical and medication needs of the people," he said.
In terms of social security, Shen said the report proposed to continue raising the minimum standard of basic pensions for urban and rural residents -- a policy will benefit over 180 million elderly people.
"The central government will allocate 1.25 trillion yuan (about 181.25 billion U.S. dollars) in subsidy funds to ensure the timely and full payment of pensions. In response to the insufficient protection of the rights and interests of people engaging in new occupations, the report proposed to steadily and orderly expand the scale of the pilot program for occupational injury insurance. This year, the policy will cover 31 provincial-level regions across the country and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps. Meanwhile, enterprises specializing in travel, instant delivery and intra-city freight delivery will be included in the pilot program, which will ensure the safety of more laborers, such as food delivery workers and online car-hailing drivers," he said.
China to improve people's wellbeing in education, healthcare, social security: official
