Offering visiting services, attracting private investment and setting up mutual help systems in neighborhoods are new ways of providing for the aged in China, the "People's Daily" reports.

When annual family reunions come to an end after the Spring Festival, many seniors return to empty houses and must deal with various hardships in their daily lives.

In response to China's aging society, local governments have been focusing on new ways to provide better care for seniors at a relatively low cost.

Chengguan District in Lanzhou, capital city of Gansu Province, has set up a platform offering various services for the elderly. Employees and volunteers provide a visiting service according to people's specific demand. Fees for the service are based on an elderly person's ability to care for himself. Those completely incapable of caring for themselves enjoy all services for free.

Zhang Guoyi, Mayor of Chengguan District, says operating the service platform costs only 10 percent of the cost of operating a traditional nursing home.

Another way of providing improved care for the elderly is coming from private investment. Pingguo Nursing Home in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, for example, is fully backed by private investment and now operates in the black. Residents pay 600 to 800 yuan a month for regular health checkups and medical care from medical school graduates.

Other regions have also adopted the mutual help system in various neighborhoods. In Donggoupan and Wangping villages in central China's Shaanxi Province, local women have set up service teams to help elderly residents with their daily tasks. The woman can get 2,000 yuan annually from the local finance department in return for their services.

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