This Day, That Year

ItemfromNov21,1984,in ChinaDaily:AretiredengineerfromGermanywhohas becomethefirstforeignerto runaState-ownedenterprise inChina,isalreadyhelping theplantincreaseproduction. WernerGerich,65,hasbeen grantedallthepowersofa Chinesedirector,including therighttohireandtransfer employees.Herunsthe WuhanDieselEnginePlant.

After Gerich’s successful work in China in the 1980s, thousands of expats have chosen to work in China.

To honor his commitment, a memorial statue was erected in Wuhan, Hubei province, on April 17, 2005, to mark the second anniversary of his death.

To further attract top foreign talent, authorities have drawn up a series of preferential policies simplifying work permit procedures and lowering the threshold for permanent residence applicants.

Since November last year, a trial program to combine the country’s two foreign work permits into one was launched in Beijing, Shang- hai and Tianjin municipalities as well as in

Hebei, Anhui, Shandong, Guangdong and Sichuan provinces and the Ningxia Hui autonomous region.

Besides policy support, local governments have been offering greater financial incentives to lure talent.

The human resources and social security bureau in Chengdu, Sichuan province, released measures in September, which allowed lead- ing foreign teams and individuals, including Nobel Prize laureates, to be eligible to receive 100 million yuan ($15 million) in government funding if they start an innovative or entrepreneurial project in the city.

Last year, more than 900,000 foreigners were employed in the country.