The farmers of Kere Village in Dagze District， Lhasa， capital of Tibet Autonomous Region， harvest their highland barley on September 6.

Flood Preparedness

　　A view of the Three Gorges Dam in Hubei Province on September 6. Chinese authorities have called for rigorous anti-flooding measures along the Yangtze River as water levels continue to rise following heavy rainfall， the Ministry of Water Resources said on the same day.

Nurses Awarded

　　Three Chinese nurses were awarded the Florence Nightingale Medal on September 2 for their outstanding contributions to healthcare.
　　Wang Qishan， Chinese Vice President and Honorary President of the Red Cross Society of China （RCSC）， presented the medals to the nurses during a ceremony inside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
　　The Chinese awardees are Cheng Shouzhen from Guangdong Province， Hu Minhua from Jiangxi Province， and Tuo Yali from Gansu Province.
　　A total of 25 nurses from 18 countries won the medal this year.
　　The medal， introduced in 1912， is the highest international honor for nurses. A total of 83 Chinese nurses have won the award since the country first began to recommend candidates back in 1983.

Blacklisting Bribers

　　Chinese authorities will introduce a blacklist system for bribers to intensify the fight against corruption， according to a guideline.
　　Research shall be carried out to put in place punishments regarding bribers’ market access and qualification restrictions， read the document published on September 8.
　　The document was jointly formulated by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China and the National Supervisory Commission， as well as a series of Party departments and top judicial authorities.
　　Stressing that punishment shall be given to both those who take bribes and those who offer them， the guideline specifies how the investigation will focus on those committing multiple acts of bribery， large bribery or the bribery of many； Party members and state employees offering bribes； bribery in key areas and fields； and major commercial bribery.
　　It asks for measures to ensure that illegal assets obtained via bribery shall be confiscated， recovered， or restituted according to the law； and that other improper interests obtained， such as professional titles， political honors， business qualifications and academic degrees， shall be canceled or revoked.

Fiber Battery

　　Chinese scientists have realized the scalable production of highperforming woven lithium-ion fiber batteries， bringing wirelessly charging electronics via clothes one step closer to reality.
　　Researchers from Fudan University have recently published their study in Nature journal， suggesting how the internal resistance of such fibers changes with their lengths， providing a theoretical support framework for the development of secure lithium-ion fiber batteries.
　　The 1-meter-long fiber developed by the research team is proven to be capable of powering wearable electronics including smartphones， smart bracelets and heart rate monitors continuously for an extended period of time.
　　Previously， the length of such batteries remained within the centimeter scale， preventing the weaving of the fibers into textiles.
　　Based on the new discovery， the researchers have managed to manufacture high-performing woven lithium-ion fiber batteries. After being integrated with wireless charging launchers， the textiles can become flexible and stable power solutions for smartphones， the team said.

More Teachers

　　The number of teachers in China has reached 17.93 million， an increase of 609，400， or 3.52 percent， from the year 2020， statistics from the Ministry of Education showed.
　　Of all subcategories， the number of special education teachers saw the most notable growth， which is 6.11 percent higher than in 2020， the ministry said at a press conference on September 8.
　　The numbers of kindergarten teachers and teachers in higher education institutions grew 5.44 percent and 5.34 percent respectively， according to the ministry.
　　In 2021， a total of 1.9 million people in the country obtained their teaching certificates.

New Release

　　A collection of the Palace Museum’s themed calendars， published in different years， is on display in Beijing on September 6. The Palace Museum， also known as the Forbidden City， released its calendar for 2022 that same day.

Airshow Debut

　　China’s independently developed AG600 large amphibious aircraft will perform its first airshow flight at the upcoming Airshow China， according to its developer， the Aviation Industry Corporation of China （AVIC）.
　　Among the various key exhibits of China’s homegrown aviation products， the AG600 will showcase its capacities of aerial water-dropping at Airshow China， or the 13th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition， AVIC spokesperson Zhou Guoqiang said. 　　The water-dropping performance will fully display the firefighting capacities of this large amphibious aircraft model， Zhou said.
　　Code-named Kunlong， the AG600 is a key piece of aeronautical equipment in China’s emergency rescue system. It meets the needs of firefighting and marine rescue missions， as well as other critical emergency rescue operations.
　　The AG600 is designed to operate in complex weather and environmental conditions. It successfully completed its maiden flight taking off from land in 2017， its first takeoff from a water reservoir in 2018， and its first takeoff at sea in 2020.
　　This year’s Airshow China will take place from September 28 to October 3 in Zhuhai， Guangdong Province.
　　About 700 companies from 40 countries and regions， including the U.S.， Britain， Germany， Russia， Canada and Brazil， will participate in the airshow both online and offline.

Digitalized Grottoes

　　Digitalization of the 1，600-yearold Jinta Temple Grottoes in the city of Zhangye， Gansu Province， has been completed， local authorities announced on September 8.
　　Launched in June， the digitalization project covers the grottoes’ eastern and western caves， as well as the murals and colored sculptures inside.
　　Located in the Qilian Mountains， the grottoes， built on fragile red sandstone with an altitude of more than 2，800 meters， endure severe cold in winter and heavy humidity in summer. Though the local cultural protection authorities have taken the necessary measures， the grottoes still face several risks， including weathering and efflorescence， according to Yao Guilan， head of the Institute for Cultural Heritage Preservation in Zhangye.
　　“Digital technology can not only help permanently preserve the cultural relics， but also provide essential data for future research and online exhibitions，”Yao said.
　　The grottoes， famous for their unique high relief sculptures with the pattern of the flying Apsaras of Buddhist art， include more than 200 colored sculptures as well as murals spanning over 500 square meters.

Underwater Tunnel

　　The construction site of the Taihu Tunnel， part of the ChangzhouWuxi Highway， in Wuxi， Jiangsu Province， on September 5. The 10.8-km-long， 43.6-meter-wide tunnel is China’s longest underwater highway tunnel and runs under Taihu Lake， the country’s third largest freshwater lake.

Business Facilitation

　　The implementation of the Regulation on Improving the Business Environment will be advanced， and a market-oriented， world-class business environment governed by a sound legal framework will be nurtured across the nation， according to a State Council Executive Meeting on September 8.
　　As part of the efforts， pilot programs on improving the business environment will be launched in Beijing， Shanghai， Chongqing， Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province， Guangzhou and Shenzhen in Guangdong Province， which are home to a relatively large number of market entities. The goal is to better meet the needs of market entities and the public and to align local reforms with advanced international standards.
　　During the first half of this year， 77，000 market entities were added on an average day in China. “Revitalizing market entities is crucial for anchoring market expectations and maintaining steady economic performance，” Premier Li Keqiang said at the meeting.

Pilot Scheme

　　A pilot trading scheme will be rolled out to encourage the consumption of green energy and accelerate China’s lowcarbon transition， the National Development and Reform Commission said on September 7.
　　According to the commission， the scheme will allow users with demand to trade directly with enterprises generating wind and solar power， with other renewable energy generation enterprises to be included in the future.
　　The commission did not specify a timeline for the scheme， but said it will work with the State Energy Administration to manage it. The State Grid and the China Southern Power Grid will establish power exchange centers in Beijing and Guangzhou to facilitate the project.

Trade Growth

　　Trade between China and Africa rose 40.5 percent year on year to $139.1 billion in the first seven months of the year， Vice Minister of Commerce Qian Keming said on September 3.
　　China’s imports climbed 46.3 percent year on year to $59.3 billion， with imports of rubber， cotton， coffee and other agricultural products doubling from the same period last year.
　　“China’s direct investment in Africa reached $2.07 billion in the seven months， outperforming the pre-pandemic level in the same period of 2019，” Qian said.
　　He also noted that Chinese and African enterprises have boosted cooperation on industrial and supply chains， construction of industrial clusters in manufacturing， agriculture， medicine and health， and exploration in emerging sectors such as clean energy， digital economy and 5G. 　　The Second China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo will take place in Changsha， Hunan Province， from September 26 to 29. In addition to offline activities， a cloud platform will be established to host online conferences， exhibitions and transactions. A report on ChinaAfrica economic and trade relations is expected to be released at the expo.

Cooperation Plans

　　On September 6， central authorities issued a new plan for the further development of a zone created in 2010 for service industry cooperation between Shenzhen and the neighboring Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
　　The Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone is home to 11，500 Hong Kong-invested companies， with a registered capital of 1.28 trillion yuan （$198 billion）. The plan will see its area expand from 14.92 square km to 120.56 square km.
　　Qianhai will play an exemplary and leading role in the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area （GBA）， the plan said. By 2035， it will have a world-class business environment and become an engine for high-quality development with a strong capability in global resource allocation.
　　On September 5， a plan for establishing a GuangdongMacao in-depth cooperation zone in Hengqin was also unveiled. Hengqin is located in the southern part of Zhuhai in Guangdong， just across the water from Macao Special Administrative Region.
　　Covering approximately 106 square km， the zone will serve as a new platform to boost Macao’s economic diversification and a new space providing convenience and enjoyment to Macao residents. The plan also defines the zone as a new model to enrich the practice of “one country， two systems，” as well as a new high ground for the building of the GBA.

Consumption City

　　On September 5， the Beijing Municipal Commerce Bureau unveiled a plan to turn the city into an international center of consumption by opening thousands of new stores over the next five years.
　　Specific projects under the plan include new consumption landmarks， new brands， digital consumption and the development of cultural， tourism， sports， education and medical consumption， according to the bureau.
　　Over 3，000 first， innovation and flagship stores of brands from both China and abroad are expected to open by 2025. The capital will also build approximately 10 cluster areas featuring domestic timehonored brands and fostering the development of more than 100 new brands. 　　“Through five years of effort， Beijing will become an international consumption center with global influence， competitiveness and reputation，” Yan Ligang， head of the Beijing Municipal Commerce Bureau， said.
　　In July， Shanghai， Beijing， Guangzhou， Tianjin and Chongqing were designated to take the lead in building international consumption center cities.

QDLP License

　　Singaporean company， ICHAM Pte. Ltd.， has become the first fund manager to obtain a license for conducting Qualified Domestic Limited Partner （QDLP） business in Chongqing.
　　The newly qualified firm has been granted a QDLP quota totaling $200 million， according to the Administrative Bureau of the China-Singapore （Chongqing） Demonstration Initiative on Strategic Connectivity.
　　The QDLP outbound investment scheme aims to offer channels for qualified domestic institutions to invest overseas. At the end of 2020， China launched the pilot QDLP program in Chongqing， with an assigned quota of $5 billion.
　　Prior to its launch in Chongqing， the pilot scheme was also launched in Beijing， Shanghai and Shenzhen to promote the two-way opening up of financial markets.
　　ICHAM Pte. Ltd. will establish a private equity fund management firm and raise funds in China to invest in global projects.

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