Cai Yingbo

THE city’s top political advisory body will put forward three major proposals at the annual session of the Fourth Shenzhen Municipal Committee of the CPPCC, which will open April 8.

The three proposals will focus on Shenzhen-Hong Kong cooperation, higher education and management of migrant workers.

The three were among 41 proposals the committee had received by Monday. The proposals to be discussed at the five-day session cover most aspects of residents’ livelihood such as medicare, education and environmental protection, according to a press conference yesterday. The local CPPCC will hand the three major proposals to the city government after deliberation.

The local CPPCC received 662 proposals last year. The proposal on developing the city’s housekeeping industry was awarded as one of 12 first-prize proposals of 2007.

“The shortage of domestic helpers has been greatly eased since Shenzhen signed a five-year agreement with Guangxi in July 2007,” said Wang Xueli, secretary of the city’s housekeeping industry association, which was commissioned to implement the proposal.

According to the agreement, Guangxi will send 10,000 domestic helpers a year to Shenzhen starting this year.

Wang said the association would standardize the industry by offering training courses and domestic helpers would require certificates.

In January, labor authorities drew up a new version of a contract for domestic helpers in line with the new Labor Contract Law, requiring house-keeping companies to provide medical insurance, on-the-job injury insurance and pensions for domestic helpers.