Ningbo's attractiveness for talents remains strong

Ningbo in East China's Zhejiang was ranked 15th nationwide in terms of its attractiveness to talents in 2021, according to a report recently released by Baidu Maps.

The ranking was one spot higher than the previous year, and eclipsed some new "first-tier cities" including Tianjin, Nanjing, Qingdao and Shenyang.

Shenzhen topped the nation in terms of attractiveness to talents. It was followed by Guangzhou, Beijing, Shanghai, Dongguan, Suzhou, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Chongqing and Foshan.

About one third of the top 30 cities are located in the Yangtze River Delta, a region encompassing the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui as well as the Shanghai municipality, an indication of the strong economic vitality in the area.

Zhejiang reported an increase of 720,000 people in its permanent population in 2021, making it the destination with the largest inflow of people in the nation, according to the report.

Ningbo saw a yearly uptick of 124,000 permanent residents, the second highest in the province, only behind Hangzhou (239,000).

The city has in recent years emerged as a magnet for talents from home and abroad.

In 2020, Ningbo attracted 166,000 college students, up 20.3 percent year-on-year. The city was also ranked first in the country in terms of attracting manufacturing talents.

This year, the local government has set a target of attracting 200,000 college students to work or start up businesses in the city.