In a bid to fully apply the national, provincial and municipal policies to support the steady development of businesses in response to the COVID-19 epidemic situation, as well as boost local economic and social development, Wuhan East Lake High-tech Development Zone -- also known as Optics Valley of China -- has formulated a policy implementation plan.

There are 44 items in the plan, including measures about reducing the burden on enterprises. Other measures include strengthening their financial support, innovation, stabilizing employment and optimizing government services.

The plan shall be implemented from the date of issuance (March 26) and shall be valid until Dec 31, 2020.

Here are some of the main measures involved in the plan:

1. Lightening the burden on enterprises:

From Feb to June 2020, a supportive two-level electricity price policy will be implemented. It will relax electricity tariff billing methods and reduce or suspend the period of the payment schedules for enterprises that cannot start normally during the epidemic prevention and control period. Except for high energy consuming industries, the electricity price for businesses will be reduced by 5 percent in stages.

For micro, small and medium-sized enterprises -- as well as for producers of epidemic prevention and control materials -- a policy for the non-stop supply of electricity, gas and water shall be implemented. These businesses shall make up the delayed fees within three months after the end of the epidemic, free of overdue fines.

For micro, small, medium and micro-sized enterprises and families (individuals) who rent zone-owned and State-owned assets for business (office buildings, workshops, and talent apartments), rents are waived for 3 months and rents are halved for 6 months.

2. Strengthening financial support:

Set up a 1 billion yuan ($141 million) epidemic relief fund to focus on supporting enterprises in the zone affected by the epidemic, through comprehensive financial services such as equity.

Small and medium-sized scientific and technological enterprises and key provincial epidemic prevention guarantee enterprises that are financing  through debt instruments, shall be subsidized by 50 percent of the interest calculated at the LPR rate not exceeding the start date of the funds raised and each enterprise shall not exceed 1 million yuan.

3. Strengthening support for innovation:

For projects that have received special emergency projects for the prevention and control of COVID-19 at the national and provincial levels, the maximum allowances shall not exceed five million yuan and three million yuan, respectively, according to the proportion of 50 percent and 30 percent of the funds allocated by the state and the province.

Scientific leaders and their teams engaged in research and development of epidemic prevention and control technology products -- such as rapid detection reagents, vaccines, innovative medical devices, specific therapeutic drugs and emergency equipment for new coronary pneumonia -- will be given priority to being included in the "3551 Optics Valley Talent Plan".

Rules will be formulated for the implementation of special award policies for high-end talent in key enterprises.

4. Increasing support for job stability and employment:

To implement the policies -- of the state, Hubei province and Wuhan city on exemption and reduction of social insurance premium rates -- from Feb 20, various types of participating insurance clients (excluding government institutions) are exempted from payment of basic endowment insurance, unemployment insurance and work-related injury insurance units, and the exemption period is five months.

Upon the end of the exemption period, the policy of reducing unemployment insurance premiums and work-related injury insurance premiums at different stages shall continue to be implemented until April 30, 2021. Enterprises that start production and distribution of materials urgently needed for epidemic prevention and control during the Spring Festival (up to March 10, 2020) may be given one-time employment subsidies of 2,000 yuan per person on meeting the requirements.

5. Optimizing government services for businesses:

Actively ensure that company employees can return to work in Wuhan. For returnees within the province, encourage companies to charter buses to pick up employees and give full subsidies to the cost of chartered cars.

Enterprises urgently requiring centralized management of returned workers, for epidemic prevention and control, will be assigned temporary accommodation to solve the accommodation problems of personnel and will be granted subsidies according to the standard of 100 yuan per day per room.