Central Plains City Cluster
This refers to the group of cities in China's inland that, with Zhengzhou as the center, are densely located in spatial layout and closely linked in economy and pursue integrated development based on advanced transportation and communication networks.
In an overall plan for building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, issued in August 2003, the provincial authorities set the goal to develop an economic uplift belt in the Zhengzhou-centered area with eight surrounding cities: Jiaozuo, Jiyuan, Kaifeng, Luohe, Luoyang, Pingdingshan, Xinxiang, and Xuchang. The Central Plains City Cluster Development Plan, approved by the State Council in December 2016, made it clear that the Central Plains city cluster would have a core development area to cover Henan's Hebi, Jiaozuo, Jiyuan, Kaifeng, Luohe, Luoyang, Pingdingshan, Shangqiu, Xinxiang, Xuchang, Zhengzhou, and Zhoukou, Shanxi's Jincheng, and Anhui's Bozhou. These cities are expected to drive the development of other cities in the Central Plains economic zone, including Henan's Anyang, Nanyang, Puyang, Sanmenxia, Xinyang, and Zhumadian, Hebei's Handan and Xingtai, Shanxi's Changzhi and Yuncheng, Anhui's Bengbu, Fuyang, Huaibei, and Suzhou, and Shandong's Heze and Liaocheng.
The Central Plains city cluster will be developed into a new economic growth pole, an important base of advanced manufacturing and modern services, a pioneer zone of innovation and entrepreneurship in central and western China, a highland of two-way opening up in inland China, and a demonstration zone for green, ecological development. This will create a development paradigm that is networked, open, and integrated. The Central Plains city cluster was designated by China's central leadership as one of the seven city clusters in a document, released in November 2018, on creating more effective mechanisms for coordinated regional development.
As the core of the Central Plains city cluster, Zhengzhou is the locomotive, engine, growth pole, and radiation source of the regional economy. A mega-city with a population of 12.6 million and a GDP of 1.26 trillion yuan, it is one of the largest transportation hubs in inland China, an important national center of commodity logistics and transactions, an influential center of education, culture, and medical care, and an advanced manufacturing center represented by automobiles, electronic information, and high-end equipment. Zhengzhou has grown to be a central city in China.
中原城市群
中原城市群是中國北方內陸地區以鄭州為中心，依托發達的交通通信網絡形成的空間結構緊湊、經濟聯系緊密的一體化發展城市群體。
2003年8月，中共河南省委、河南省政府印發《河南省全面建設小康社會規劃綱要》，提出要建設中原城市群經濟隆起帶，即以鄭州為中心，包括洛陽、開封、新鄉、焦作、許昌、平頂山、漯河、濟源在內的城市密集區。2016年12月國務院批復的《中原城市群發展規劃》，明確中原城市群以河南省鄭州市、開封市、洛陽市、平頂山市、新鄉市、焦作市、許昌市、漯河市、濟源市、鶴壁市、商丘市、周口市和山西省晉城市、安徽省亳州市為核心發展區，聯動輻射河南省安陽市、濮陽市、三門峽市、南陽市、信陽市、駐馬店市，河北省邯鄲市、邢臺市，山西省長治市、運城市，安徽省宿州市、阜陽市、淮北市、蚌埠市，山東省聊城市、菏澤市等中原經濟區其他城市，要求把中原城市群建設成為經濟發展新增長極、重要的先進制造業和現代服務業基地、中西部地區創新創業先行區、內陸地區雙向開放新高地和綠色生態發展示范區，構建網絡化、開放式、一體化的發展新格局。2018年11月，中共中央、國務院發布《關于建立更加有效的區域協調發展新機制的意見》，將中原城市群列為7大城市群之一。
作為中原城市群的核心城市，鄭州是區域經濟的龍頭、發動機、增長極和輻射源，是人口超過1260萬、GDP總量超過1.26萬億的特大城市，是內陸地區最大的立體交通樞紐之一，也是全國重要的商品物流和市場交易中心，全國有影響的教育、文化和醫療中心，以汽車、電子信息和高端裝備為代表的先進制造業中心，成為國家中心城市之一。
