Xiamen is on a fast track to becoming China's eminent harbour city where economic growth and the preservation of the environment go hand in hand, according to its local Party secretary.
In an exclusive interview, Zheng Lizhong laid out a detailed blueprint for Xiamen's economic development in the coming decade.
"The 16th Party congress calls for achieving a nationwide well-off living standard by the year 2020," he said.
"Here in Xiamen we have moved the goal ahead by nine years. We'll accomplish all the objectives set forth in the national plan by 2011."
Xiamen has been doubling the performance of some of its key economic indicators, such as its gross domestic product (GDP), about every five years since it was designated as one of the four special economic zones in the 1980s.
Its 2001 GDP of 55.83 billion yuan (US$6.7 billion) was 7.32 times that of 1989, an average annual increase of 19.3 per cent.
The registered population of the city has already achieved a per capita GDP of 41,111 yuan (US$5,000), putting it at the forefront of China's big and medium-sized cities.
Zheng said Xiamen's municipal policy is to develop an export-oriented manufacturing powerhouse while at the same time expand its tourism, retail and real estate sectors.
"We'll refine the industrial composition with the infusion of new technologies and form a core competency around high tech, service and modern agriculture," Zheng said.
He said tourists and investors tended to fall in love with Xiamen almost immediately. The city has spent 21 million yuan (US$2.5 million) on urban planning alone. Unsightly buildings are being removed to restore the environment to its natural splendour.
The number of tourists will grow 10-fold by 2011 from the current figure of 10 million per year. "Xiamen opens her arms to all visitors," Zheng said.
"We have made necessary preparations for the opening of three direct links, which will bring Taiwan compatriots to the mainland in a much faster and more cost-efficient manner.''
(China Daily December 6, 2002)
