"Within 10 or 20 years, an economic center will rise in north China that will exceed south China in the scope of its development."  

Xu Weiping made the remark on May 22 at the Capital Market Development Forum, part of the 7th China Beijing International High-tech Expo (CHITEC), which opened May 20 in Beijing. Xu is managing director of the Advanced Business Park (ABP) in Fengtai District, southwestern Beijing.

The new economic center, based in Beijing and backed by the Bohai Sea coastal region as well as northeast and northwest China, has certain advantages over south China, although the latter has taken the lead in regional economic development since the nation adopted its reform and opening policy nearly 25 years ago.

Beijing, as the country's political center, is able to provide abundant and useful governmental and political information, which can play a key role in market readjustment.

There is also a galaxy of talent in north China. Beijing's Zhongguancun subdistrict alone is home to some 64 key universities, including the prestigious Peking, Tsinghua and Renmin universities. In addition, a large number of heavy industry and military industry bases are located in north China. These are advantages not enjoyed by the south, Xu pointed out.

"Besides its great potential, north China boasts enormous intangible assets, such as the experiences and lessons accumulated during the 25 years of the country's market economy development," said Xu.

A blueprint for development of the Bohai Sea economic ring was drawn on May 21 at CHITEC's High-profile Forum on Bohai Economic Ring Cooperation & Development. Those who attended the forum included experts and leaders from Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shanxi, Liaoning, Shandong and Inner Mongolia, as well as the State Development and Reform Commission and the Secretariat of the Boao Forum for Asia.

The proposed Bohai Sea economic ring mainly comprises Liaodong Peninsula, Shandong Peninsula, Hebei Province, Beijing and Tianjin, but stretches far into Shanxi, Liaoning, Shandong and the middle and eastern parts of Inner Mongolia. The whole region accounts for 12 percent of the country's total territory, with a population of 260 million, according to Ji Yunshi, governor of Hebei Province.

"We must create a strategic program on the development of the Bohai Sea economic ring, with overall planning for natural resource utilization, infrastructure facilities, town and country setup, and industrial structure in the region," said Ji.

Zhang Mao, vice mayor of Beijing, said that the original administrative divisions across the region should be broken to strengthen integrated Bohai regional cooperation. At the same time, he noted, "the Bohai ring environment must be jointly protected to realize sustainable development."

The Bohai coastal region can be divided into three city clusters: Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan (Hebei), Shenyang-Dalian (Liaoning) and Qingdao-Jinan (Shandong). "Cooperation and division of work must be reinforced between the three clusters," suggested Professor Zhou Yixing, of the Department of Urban and Environmental Sciences at Peking University.

Besides integrated development, a market network and a communication system, "close ties should be established between cities that are complementary in economy so as to coordinate development in the Bohai region," said Zhang Baoshun, governor of Shanxi Province.

Boao Forum for Asia Secretary-General Long Yongtu discussed the establishment of a Bohai economic ring cooperative mechanism. Langfang, in Hebei Province -- within an hour's drive from both Beijing and Tianjin -- has been selected as the headquarters for a planned cooperation committee in charge of daily operations. The committee will establish connections between the State Development and Reform Commission, the Boao Forum for Asia, and all cities and provinces involved in the Bohai economic ring, Long said.

(China.org.cn by Shao Da, May 26, 2004)