Job seekers talk with employers at a job fair held for the 2025 graduates of Heilongjiang University in Harbin, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, Dec. 23, 2024. (Photo/Xinhua)

Chongqing - Chongqing has been recognized as one of China’s top 50 talent-friendly cities, according to a report released recently by the China Human Resource Development Association.

The China Talent-Friendly Cities Research Report 2025 uses big data and AI to assess cities from the dimensions of talent attraction and talent development ecosystem, based on 10 indicators such as net talent inflow, talent retention, local employment, public service friendliness, and technology and innovation capacity.

In recent years, Chongqing has stepped up efforts to build itself as the first-choice city in western China for young people seeking employment and entrepreneurship. The latest data showed that in 2024, the city attracted 345,000 young people—including university graduates—to stay or move to Chongqing for jobs and business ventures, while its young R&D workforce grew 11.5% year-on-year. The city has also recruited more than 1,000 postdoctoral researchers annually for four consecutive years, with young scientists now leading over 70% of municipal-level research projects.

Chongqing has also rolled out a series of youth-friendly policies, including the Action Plan for Retaining and Attracting More Than One Million University Graduates. Over the past year, the city issued 6.97 billion yuan (about 979.69 million U.S. dollars) in loans to support young people, while a range of digital applications provided integrated services for more than 4 million youth. Free school vacation childcare programs benefited over 100,000 primary school students.

According to the Chongqing Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, the city aims to attract 400,000 young people this year to work or start businesses. To achieve this, it has launched five major programs: organizing internships in advanced manufacturing, productive service industries, and grassroots institutions to guide students in career choices; supporting university graduates in grassroots employment; strengthening employment guidance training; helping disadvantaged graduates improve job-readiness; and cracking down on illegal recruitment practices.

The city will also focus on four key areas: creating 1.2 million market-driven jobs and 26,000 policy-supported roles in government, public institutions, and state-owned enterprises; increasing job supply with more than 6,000 online and offline job fairs; expanding entrepreneurship with 10 upgraded innovation hubs and 10,000 free workstations; and enhancing digital job-matching services.

Additionally, Chongqing is further upgrading public services, ensuring that all young people seeking employment receive at least one policy briefing, one career counseling session, three job recommendations, and one vocational training or internship opportunity.