Lin Ailing (right) and her partner engage audiences with live-streamed product sales.

Pingtan, a vibrant island in Fujian Province, has become a hub for grassroots entrepreneurship thanks to the national "Malanhua Plan" launched in 2021. The initiative offers vocational training and mentorship to aspiring entrepreneurs, helping turn local potential into tangible success.

Former educator Lin Ailing shifted to selling Pingtan's specialty dried seafood after facing challenges in her kindergarten business. "The training broadened my horizons with cutting-edge knowledge on cost control and customer management," she shared. Equipped with live-streaming skills from subsequent courses, she now runs a popular online store promoting local flavors to a national audience.

Returnee Gao Juwen also benefited, as he struggled to sell his family's poultry before joining the program. "This is my first time learning systematic entrepreneurship knowledge," he noted. With guidance, he built targeted online accounts and now achieves stable monthly revenue of 20,000 to 30,000 yuan through live streams and repeat customers.

Administered by Pingtan's Social Undertakings Bureau, the plan has supported over 13,000 new urban jobs with the urban surveyed unemployment rate held below 5.5% since the 14th Five-Year Plan period (from 2021 to 2025).