Carrying out innovation and entrepreneurship in one's hometown has become a new trend in Shanxi province in recent years. 

As of the end of 2020, 91,200 people had returned to Shanxi to innovate and start businesses, which has promoted the return of ideas, technologies and capital, and advanced the development of rural industries in the province. 

Policies promote innovation and entrepreneurship

Shanxi has issued a series of policies to provide the greatest convenience for innovators and entrepreneurs who return to their hometowns. These measures cover tax reduction and exemption, entrepreneurial guarantee loans, land utilization and bonuses. 

For example, the province has increased the guaranteed loan amount for startups from 150,000 yuan ($23,070) to 300,000 yuan. 

Stimulated by the favorable policies, 807,000 migrant workers have gone back to Shanxi for employment since 2020. 

Industrial development helps employment

Shanxi adopted many measures to improve the employment situation in 2020, such as promoting employment near or at home, developing public posts, supporting entrepreneurship and launching unemployment insurance.

As a result, 188,400 migrant workers have gotten employed at or near home and 91,200 people have gone back to Shanxi to start their own businesses. 

The three major tourist roads – Yellow River No 1, Great Wall No 1 and Taihang No 1 – have greatly driven rural development.

For instance, relying on Taihang No 1 tourist road, Qinshui county in Jincheng city has developed more than 100 inns and guesthouses and promoted the development of more than 20 agricultural parks. The county now receives some one million visits by tourists annually, increasing incomes for more than 40,000 farmers and helping 4,222 people from 18 villages to escape poverty. 

Mass vocational skills training adds vitality to villages

Shanxi has implemented a mass vocational skills improvement project to enhance the skills of workers and rejuvenate rural areas through online and offline training.

In 2020, Shanxi implemented six special training sessions to improve farmers' skills with 38,000 skilled farmers having been trained. 

The province has also increased its support for award-winning rural innovation and entrepreneurship projects that have stimulated the enthusiasm and confidence of migrant workers and other groups to return to their hometowns for work. 

Since 2017, Shanxi has held four rural innovation and entrepreneurship competitions targeted at farmers.

A total of 14 counties, 18 industrial parks, 20 bases and 17 individuals have been listed as national models for rural innovation and entrepreneurship.