A senior cabinet official said China will continue to plunge
huge investments into western regions over the next five years to
develop it into an investment magnet for both domestic and overseas
investors.
The money will be used to build up local infrastructure and
improve the ecological environment, said Li Zibin, deputy director
of the Office of the Leading Group for Western Region Development
at the State Council.
"We need an additional five years to turn western China into an
ideal zone for investors from home and abroad," he said.
Li made the remarks on the eve of the fifth anniversary of the
country's launch of its "go-west" strategy. Western China boasts
rich natural resources and a cheap labor supply.
Sources close to the State Council said China's highest
leadership will organize a high-level meeting soon to mark the
anniversary and highlight its intentions of investing heavily in
the region.
Li said the next five years are very important for China to make
further improvement in environmental protection, communications and
poverty relief in western China.
Vice-Premier Huang Ju recently pointed out that the western
development strategy would still be one of China's top
priorities.
During an inspection tour in the Guangxi
Zhuang Autonomous Region at the beginning of this month, Huang
urged governments at all levels to continue to speed up economic
and social development there.
China initiated its western development strategy in 1999 to help
the relatively backward area, which includes 12 provinces,
autonomous regions and Chongqing,
catch up with East China.
The vast western regions cover half of the nation's territory
and are home to one-fourth of its population, producing about 65
percent of the nation's total average gross domestic product
(GDP).
A series of preferential policies, including more governmental
investment, preferential tax rates and flexible policies, are
included in the strategy. All efforts have gradually paid off and
the average annual GDP rate in the area has stood as high as 10
percent during the 2000-04 period. But that in 1999 was just 7.2
percent.
Education improves
Meanwhile, Li said compulsory education and poverty relief
endeavors also go well. By 2007, all students in the region can
accept nine-year compulsory education and about 20 million rural
people stricken by absolute poverty can have basic food, clothing
and shelter.
He said business opportunities are huge in the west and the
government should try hard to reform the functions to provide
better services for investors and create a sound investment
surrounding.
Statistics indicate that about US$10 billion in foreign direct
investment has poured into the western region during past five
years and a total of 10,000 businesses from eastern and coastal
regions have invested funds in the region.
He said most corporate giants in the Fortune 500, including
Toyota, Motorola, Shell, BP and General Motors have entered the
region.
For further expansion and development in the region, a sound
legal framework is also essential, said Li, who is also the vice
minister of National Development and Reform Commission.
He said China is drafting a law regulating measures and
activities in promoting the western region and the law-making
National People's Congress Standing Committee has included the
legislation in its five-year plan.
(China Daily January 17, 2005)