A college student at Changzhou University in Changzhou, East China's Jiangsu province volunteers at a COVID-19 vaccination site. [Photo/IC]

Changzhou in East China's Jiangsu province released a new action plan on March 2 to help the city's college students with self-employment.

According to the plan, Changzhou is aiming to help over 6,000 students start their own businesses that would in turn create jobs for more than 18,000 people from 2022-24. It also plans to sponsor more than 300 entrepreneurship projects by college students.

The city has been carrying out such a campaign for several years. Data showed that from 2019-21, Changzhou provided entrepreneurship-related training for over 35,000 college students and helped more than 11,000 of them successfully start companies which generated 44,200 jobs. The city also spent over 46 million yuan ($7.28 million) to support these businesses during this period.

In addition, 54 entrepreneurship bases at the municipal level or above have been set up in the city to date.

Compared to previous action plans, the new one will benefit more college students, including self-taught graduates, and provide them with more subsidies over a longer period.