Hunan province aims to achieve balanced economic growth this
year and expand its economy by 10 percent, a senior government
official has said.
"We will stick to the concept of a scientific outlook on
development to maintain sound and rapid economic growth,"
provincial governor Zhou Qiang said in his work report to the
region's people's congress yesterday.
Hunan's gross domestic product (GDP) rose to 914.5 billion yuan
($126.3 billion) last year, up 14.4 percent year-on-year, figures
from the Hunan statistics bureau showed.
The government's fiscal revenue increased 25.2 percent to 111.9
billion yuan, a record high in history.
Zhou said Hunan will push forward the development of the
Changsha, Zhuzhou and Xiangtan regions, betting on the taking-off
of the experimental zone towards a balanced development of the
province.
Last month, the State Council, China's Cabinet, designated the
three cities as an experimental zone for energy-saving and
environmentally friendly programs.
The nation now has six experimental zones - starting with
Shanghai's Pudong New District in 2005 - which focus on discovering
new methods for sustainable social and economic development.
Located in the northeastern part of Hunan, Changsha, Zhuzhou and
Xiangtan are long-time industrial cities and face a lack of
resources and environmental pollution.
Nevertheless, the three cities are the engines of the province's
growth and contributed 37.6 percent of its GDP in 2006. They also
hold 19.2 percent of the province's population.
"We will also strive to make breakthroughs in areas such as
energy-saving, environmental protection and financial services,"
Zhou said.
Hunan will try to reduce its energy intensity, or the amount of
energy needed to produce a unit of GDP, by 4 percent this year,
officials said.
It also aims to cut its carbon dioxide and chemical oxygen
demand emissions by 2 percent. Last year, the province saw its
energy intensity and pollutant emissions fall for the first
time.
Zhou said Hunan will embark on a campaign to clean up pollution
in the Xiangjiang River and Dongting Lake regions. The province
will also invest 10 billion yuan over three years to established
water treatment facilities in all the cities and towns in the
province.
Hunan has already suspended the operations of 234 paper plants
around Dongting Lake, one of the five largest freshwater lakes in
the nation. Local authorities have also set a deadline for another
596 paper mills to clean up their operations.
The province will continue to woo foreign investment, and
encourage overseas companies to invest in areas such as
agriculture, hi-tech and modern service industries, Zhou said.
Foreign direct investment into Hunan amounted to $10.84 billion
over the past five years, representing an average growth of 26%
annually. Currently, more than 42 Fortune 500 enterprises have set
up operations in Hunan.
(China Daily January 21, 2008)