Hamid Dehgh (left, first), volunteers as a night guard in Jimingshan Community in Yiwu, Zhejiang province. [Photo/Jimingshan Community]

Iranian businessman Hamid Dehgh is well-known in Yiwu, Zhejiang province for his devoted efforts to help a local community fight the COVID-19 epidemic.

Dehgh has lived in Yiwu for 17 years, is married to a Chinese girl, and speaks fluent Chinese. He regards Yiwu as is home away from home.

At the onset of the epidemic in China, Dehgh volunteered as a night guard in Jimingshan Community, which, known as a "UN Community", houses more than 1,380 foreigners from 74 countries and regions.

According to Dehgh, he can speak multiple languages, including Chinese, Japanese, English and Persian, and has worked mainly patrolling the community, offering translation services and purchasing goods for local residents.

As the epidemic began to subside and the government helped companies resume operations, Dehgh volunteered again to explain local favorable policies to foreign trade companies.

Located close to the Yiwu International Trade City, Jimingshan Community is home to 1,035 companies, including more than 260 foreign trade companies.

Dehgh himself previously owned a trading company in Yiwu, the first trading company to be founded by a foreigner with import-export rights in the city.

Dehgh has also helped promote local restaurants through live streams, which has become an effective way to boost consumption.

Nearly 30 foreign businessmen and exchange students from 17 countries and regions attend an e-commerce live stream training course in Yiwu, Zhejiang province on June 16. [Photo/zgyww.cn] 

Yiwu also offered special training courses for foreign businessmen to learn how to host e-commerce live streams.

According to the public security bureau of Yiwu, the city has around 15,000 foreign residents from more than 100 countries and receives more than 550,000 foreign merchants every year.