A number of ministries, including the Ministry of Education, and the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission as well as the State Administration for Market Regulation, have responded in the last week to issues of public concern.

Recruitment drive starts for rural-area teachers

China will recruit 10,000 retired teachers for rural schools to boost education in undeveloped areas, according to a plan jointly formulated by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance.

According to the plan, eligible teachers should be aged under 65 and hold intermediate or advanced teacher qualifications. They will teach in primary and junior middle schools in underdeveloped areas, including impoverished areas and border areas, from 2018 to 2020.

They will also listen to and evaluate lessons offered by other teachers, deliver lectures and host workshops.

The cost will be covered jointly by central and local finance, and each will be offered a salary of 20,000 yuan ($2,960) every year, the plan said.

Reduced costs for businesses, enterprises

The banking regulator wants financial institutions to step up financing services and reduce costs for private enterprises and small and micro businesses.

Financial institutions will establish effective incentive mechanisms at the grassroots, reduce the cost of financing and establish effective information channels, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission said in a statement on July 18.

Private enterprises and small and micro businesses play an important role in promoting economic growth, adding jobs and spurring innovation, and are important to accelerate efforts to improve financial service capacities, the regulator said.

Financial institutions should come up with independent credit plans, refine evaluations and arrange special incentive funds to spur staff to serve such businesses, it said.

Large and medium-sized banks are required to take a leading role and intensify efforts to offer credit to such businesses. More should be done to lower the interest rates for small and micro businesses.

Financial institutions are also required to use new technologies, such as the internet, big data, artificial intelligence and cloud computing, to speed up the development of online service channels and credit approval procedures.

They should also seek greater alignment in incentive policies on inclusive finance rolled out by authorities, better employ risk compensation funds offered by government at various levels and enhance information sharing and coordination with related government departments, it said.

Crackdown launched on false, illegal web advertising

The State Administration for Market Regulation banned 8,104 illegal and false online advertisements in the first half of this year, and imposed fines totaling 116.7 million yuan ($17.3 million) to boost consumer rights.

The market regulator published 30 typical cases of illegal and false online advertisements covering various sectors, including healthcare, real estate, food, and education, on July 20.

It launched a campaign to regulate online advertising in February, and local authorities have been cracking down on various types of illegal and false advertising, the administration said.

Campaign to target crimes involving cultural relics

The Ministry of Public Security and the State Administration of Cultural Heritage have jointly launched a six-month campaign targeting crimes involving cultural relics.

Li Wei, vice-minister of public security, said at a teleconference that cases of illegally excavating, stealing, reselling and smuggling cultural relics are still rampant.

It is important for the police to improve their methods of investigation of such crimes, he said, adding that they should establish long-term work mechanisms with cultural heritage departments.

Liu Yuzhu, head of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, said at the teleconference that cultural heritage authorities at different levels should step up talent development in identification and evaluation of antiques, and better coordinate with the police and departments of justice.

The authorities should also strengthen supervision and safeguarding of cultural relics and improve the level of security at museums and cultural relic sites, he said.