China, with a population of 1.3 billion and limited natural
resources, should adopt a sustainable development strategy for
building houses, construction minister Yu Zhengsheng said on
Wednesday.
"The blind construction of big and luxurious apartments and houses
was not a good choice, considering the actual situation in China,"
Yu said. "Most Chinese people are not well-off enough to afford
apartments ranging from 200 to 300 square meters."
Yu
made the remarks in Beijing in a keynote speech that kicked off a
two-day workshop on human settlements and environmental
development.
A
housing boom is expected to continue until 2010 as the ministry
strives to achieve the target of 23 square metres of living space
for every urban resident.
The ministry recently promulgated its long-term plan in which China
expects to build 8.4 billion square metres of housing over the next
10 years.
Economic research indicates that urban residents will begin to
spend more on housing when their average annual income reaches
US$800 to US$1,500.
The gross domestic product (GDP) per capita stood at 5,598 yuan
(US$676) last year. The figure is expected to double by 2010.
Yu
reminded more than 300 participants, including officials and
experts, of their duties in saving historic relics and protecting
the environment as the urbanization drive quickens in China.
The country currently has 663 cities, four times more than in
1980.
By
the end of last year, China's urban population had increased to 456
million, more than one-third of the country's total, compared with
57.6 million half a century ago.
At
Wednesday's workshop, Yu also expressed concerns over survey
results indicating that some builders haven't followed professional
guidelines during the construction process.
"The recent survey by our ministry shows that some buildings
finished in 2000 haven't been constructed in accordance with
construction processing regulations," Yu said.
Therefore, he said, one of his ministry's priorities is to
strengthen the enforcement of regulations related to building
enterprises.
Also on Wednesday, the third Public and Municipal Infrastructure
Exhibition opened in Beijing. It was jointly organized by the
ministry's Urban Construction Department and Information
Center.
(China
Daily October 25, 2001)