China's Wuhu appoints officer to offer personalized help for overseas firms

China's Wuhu Economic and Technological Development Area, located in Wuhu city, east China's Anhui Province, has appointed a dedicated "chief foreign company service officer" to provide personalized assistance to overseas enterprises, as part of its efforts to attract and retain foreign investment.

In January 2023, the area established a service hall within its investment service center and appointed Yin Lu, a multilingual staff member fluent in Chinese, English, and German, to the role. As the chief foreign company service officer, Yin offers "one-stop, zero-distance" assistance to foreign companies, addressing concerns ranging from minor issues like local attractions to major business matters.

Yin Lu (left), chief foreign company service officer at Wuhu Economic and Technological Development Area, engages with a customer. (People's Daily Online/Zhang Jun)

The Wuhu Economic and Technological Development Area hosts 163 foreign-funded enterprises, including 31 invested by oversea Fortune Global 500 companies. To cater to their needs, the area has created a foreign-funded enterprise database and regularly communicates preferential policies and enterprise-related services through company visits and information releases on portal websites.

"Foreign executives often face challenges due to unfamiliar surroundings and language barriers when they first arrive in the area," said Yin. Therefore, the chief foreign company service officer collects demands through barrier-free, one-on-one services and collaborates with relevant functional departments to provide solutions, with simple matters resolved on the same day and complex issues addressed within five days.

In November 2023, a foreign executive from Continental Automobile Body Electronic System (Wuhu) Co. Ltd. raised concerns about heavy truck traffic near the factory gate and requested the installation of speed bumps. Following an investigation, speed bumps were promptly installed, earning praise from the company.

"In the service center, everyone is a 'service officer.' You can contact us at any time!" Yin said.

The establishment of the role is just one example of the Wuhu Economic and Technological Development Area's efforts to improve the business environment and attract foreign investment.

In 2023, the area signed 13 new foreign capital projects worth approximately 2.2 billion yuan ($303 million), with reinvestment from foreign enterprises accounting for 77 percent. The actual utilized foreign capital reached $207 million, representing 78 percent of Wuhu city's total and a 94 percent increase from the previous year.

(Pan Yidan, an intern, also contributed to this article.)