As of 24:00, February 26th, Guangdong had reported no new cases across the province.

The 33rd press conference on Guangdong's fight against the coronavirus (COVID-19) was held in Guangzhou today.

(Photo: Cao Yaqin)

30 measures were issued yesterday to provide guidance for the resumption of work and epidemic prevention and control during the next phase.

Zhang Guangjun, Vice Governor of Guangdong Province, stated that based on previous efforts on epidemic prevention and control, these refined 30 measures are more operable.

He pointed out that 30 measures include the resumption of production, a graded prevention scheme which classifies different areas, and further supporting foreign investment among other issues.

According to the measures, Guangdong will further simplify customs clearance process, facilitate tax refund (exemption), and reduce port inspection and quarantine charges. Moreover, with online service platforms, Guangdong plans to establish a rapid response mechanism dealing with enterprise appeals, and cancel unnecessary approval processes.

Zhang further noted, Guangdong has fully implemented a graded prevention scheme. Counties and districts are assessed based on certain factors, including new cases within 14 days and personnel flow. As of February 26th, there are 2 high-risk areas, 59 medium-risk areas and 78 low-risk areas across the province.

"Along with the development of the epidemic, dynamic adjustment will be made to confirm the risk level in accordance with laws and regulations," Zhang said.

Tu Gaokun, Director-General of the Department of Industry and Information Technology of Guangdong Province, indicated that by February 26th, over 48,000 large-scale industrial enterprises (90% of the province’s total) had resumed operations.

"If there are difficulties in the resumption of production, e.g. financing, employment, tax and export, companies can post their concerns on the platform Yueshangtong (via app or login to http://www.gdzwfw.gov.cn/)," Tu said.

Guangdong now produces more than 20 million face masks per day, a 200-fold increase on late January. Each city will put 10 million masks per day into the market for citizens to buy. In addition, Guangdong has also allocated another 2 million masks to 8 cities with lower mask production capacity.

Since the first medical team was sent to Hubei on January 24th, Guangdong has sent more than 2,400 medical staff to assist in the COVID-19 control efforts there.

"As of February 25th, Guangdong has delivered over 1.5 million medical items and daily supplies to Hubei," said Zhou Zixiao, Deputy Director-General of the Health Commission of Guangdong Province. "We have also sent more than 30 psychiatrists to Hubei so as to help our medical team deal with stress."

She added, over 700 people are on standby to assist in Hubei at any time.

With Guangdong busy preparing the 14th Five-Year Plan, Huang Huadong, chief economist of the Guangdong Provincial Development and Reform Commission, indicated that the problems exposed in the epidemic prevention and control should be included in the plan, so as to strengthen the capacity of public services.

Author: Hannah, Steven

Editor: Simon, Keane