(Photo: VCG)

The government of Qinhuangdao City in North China's Hebei Province on Sunday is giving away 5 million yuan ($700,000) worth of restaurant vouchers to help the restaurant industry get back on its feet after the end of the COVID-19 epidemic. 

The government is giving away vouchers valued at 30 yuan, 50 yuan and 100 yuan using a lottery system on its official WeChat social media account. 

“The principles of openness, fairness and equitably carrying out activities to reward and promote consumption always come first, and thus ensure that consumers get preferential policies,” a Qinhuangdao official said in a statement, adding, “Beyond traditional marketing, the catering businesses are supposed to carry out more flexible and innovative methods facing that particular challenge of public health.”

The policy is expected to help accelerate the recovery of local consumption. The restaurant industry in Qinhuangdao has been greatly impacted by the novel coronavirus epidemic and small and medium-sized businesses are faced with high-pressure situations as they try to recover, according to the government. 

(Compiled by Wu Qingyang)