Hong Kong, Macao and five
Taiwan cities beat most of their mainland counterparts to join
the leaders' pack of China's most competitive cities.
Beijing was ranked fourth in overall competitiveness of 200
major Chinese cities behind Hong Kong, Taipei and
Shanghai.
But the capital shot up to the second place on the mainland
overtaking southern powerhouses Shenzhen and Guangzhou.
The findings were released yesterday in an annual report on
urban competitiveness published by the Chinese Academy of Social
Sciences.
It was the first time the top government think tank included
cities outside the mainland in its annual analysis which has become
a reference for city planners and investors since it was first
released in 2003, according to senior researcher Ni Pengfei.
"We have broadened our research horizons ... to cater to
readers' needs so the rankings of some mainland cities slid this
year but that does not necessarily mean their absolute
competitiveness declined," Ni said.
Ni and his 100-expert team factored in economic growth, market
share, productivity, environmental resources, the level of
technological innovation as well per-capita income to compile the
list.
Except for economic growth, cities outside the mainland are more
competitive than the mainland cities, according to the report.
The researchers discovered a clear geographical pattern to
competitiveness the islands and the eastern seaboard were the
strongest followed by the central areas and the western regions, Ni
said.
Except for Beijing, Dalian and Shenyang, the mainland's most
competitive cities are on the east coast while cities in central
and western China rank low on the list.
But on the whole, the competitiveness of mainland cities has
grown dramatically in recent years, a sharp contrast to Taiwan and
Hong Kong.
For example, Ni said, in terms of economic growth which is a key
gauging factor for competitiveness Chiayi City in Taiwan posted
negative growth two years in a row, and Hong Kong ranked 198th
among the 200 cities.
The report proposes that the government help east China bolster
its global competitiveness, while supporting central and western
cities build up their competition capacity.
Based on its survey of 6,000 residents in 60 cities, the report
concludes that in the years ahead, Chinese cities should give
priority to medicare, education, housing and transport to improve
living conditions and build more harmonious communities.
(China Daily March 21, 2006)