A
press conference was held by the Information Office of the
State Council on August 14, 2000. On the conference, Li Zibin,
Vice Minister of the State Development Planning Commission
and Deputy Director of the Western Region Development Office
of the State Council, made a speech on the progress made in
western region development. Tao Wuxian, Vice Minister of the
Preparatory Committee of the 2000 Western Forum of China and
Party Secretary of Chengdu city of Sichuan Province, informed
the reporters on the progress of the forum. Both also answered
questions raised by the reporters.
The strategy of the large-scale development of the western
region launched by the State has received enthusiastic responses
from the people throughout China and also drawn extensive
international concern. By pooling the collective wisdom
and absorbing all useful ideas, various quarters of society
have advanced many good ideas and suggestions. The competent
departments of the State Council, in accordance with respective
responsibilities, are pooling efforts in working out specific
plans for the implementation of the western region development
strategy. The various provinces (autonomous regions and
municipality) in the west are also discussing such issues
as how to seize the current good opportunity to quicken
their pace of reform and opening-up and strive to achieve
better and faster progress in economic construction and
all social undertakings.
In the first half of this year, like other parts of the
country, the western region saw major improvement in economic
growth. Its GDP and consumption rose notably, exceeding
the growth rates of last year; the increase of investment
in fixed assets surpassed the national average level; and
key infrastructure construction and ecological conservation
projects were launched as planned. However, there are also
some problems that allow of no negligence. For instance,
some localities lack sufficient understanding of the protracted
and arduous nature of the western region development program,
while others have spent too much energy on competing each
other in holding investment invitation meetings and business
talks, and failed to make due efforts to conduct investigation
and study down to the grassroots. In order to lure overseas
investment, a few localities have put forward policies that
overstep their power. These problems should be corrected
promptly.
In order to strengthen the Government's guidance over the
western region development work and explore new ideas, new
methods and new mechanisms for the development of the western
region, the Western Region Development Office and the Information
Office of the State Council and other competent departments
will join efforts with the people's governments of various
provinces (autonomous regions and municipality) in the west
to regularly convene western region development forums on
an annual basis to counter the major problems accruing in
the western region development. The 2000oWestern Forum of
China, the first of this event, will be held in Chengdu,
capital of Sichuan Province. The topic for discussion is
to advance the development of the western region step by
step with emphasis on key points. The western provinces
(autonomous regions and municipality) will take turns to
host the forum in the future.
In line with the State Council's overall plan for the development
of the western region, priority will be given to the development
work in the following aspects:
1. Formulating and Advancing Unified Western Region Development
Policy
At present, competent departments of the State Council
are formulating policy measures and rules for implementation
that will help promote the development of the west. On the
basis of the policy suggestions made by various departments,
the Western Region Development Office will work out a plan
through unified coordination and deliberation, with the
aim of creating a sound environment for the implementation
of the western region development strategy. The unified
western region development policy will be promulgated and
put into practice around October this year.
While formulating the western region development policy,
emphasis will be put on studying the policy measures for
deepening reform and enlarging opening-up. Specific efforts
will be pooled to deepen the reform of State-owned enterprises,
enhance the vitality of enterprises, energetically develop
urban and rural collective, individual, private, foreign-funded
and other forms of ownership, and gradually turn enterprises
into the leading force in the development of the western
region. Endeavors will also be made to quicken conceptual
changes, improve the investment environment significantly,
expand the scope of foreign investment, develop an export-oriented
economy in an all-round way, and enlarge foreign economic
and technological exchange and cooperation. Enterprises
in the east will be attracted to make investment in construction
projects and do business in the west, and diversified forms
of economic and technological cooperation and counterpart
assistance will be carried out between the east and the
west.
Attention will be attached to studying policy measures
on energetically developing science, technology and education,
and on attracting and cultivating talented people. Application
of scientific results should be accelerated in the west,
with focus on developing advanced and applicable technology,
intensifying the absorption, transfer and utilization of
imported technology, actively developing technology-based
enterprises, and improving technological service. Efforts
will also be made to expedite the universalization of the
nine-year compulsory education and propel the development
of high, secondary and various forms of vocational education.
Every possible means will be tried to give play to the role
of talented people, and positive measures will be adopted
to introduce talents from outside and cultivate professionals
of various types at various levels badly needed in western
region development. The work of the exchange of cadres in
the west should be further improved.
Policy measures will also be studied, concerning fiscal,
taxation, financial, investment, pricing, land, foreign
investment, economic and trade sectors in the western region
development.
2. Formulating an Overall Western Region Development Plan
in Earnest
One of the key tasks for western region development this
year is to formulate a development plan for the region.
In drafting the plan, the following six principles will
be adhered:
First, to proceed from the actual situation, act according
to objective law and local capacity, focus on efficiency,
and advance the development of the western region in a planned
and step-by-step way;
Second, to lay stress on key points, develop what should
be developed and withdraw what should be withdrawn, do things
according to local conditions, give full play to local advantages,
and combine western region development with regional economic
restructuring;
Third, to be far-sighted based on the current situation,
and combine the effort to resolve the present prominent
problems in western region development with that to achieve
the long-term goals of development;
Fourth, to persist in unified planning, take the overall
interests into consideration, seek mutual promotion, and
coordinate the effort to quicken the development of the
central and western regions with that to further advance
the development of eastern coastal areas;
Fifth, to take into account the overall situation, make
plans scientifically, and bring the goals, plans and policy
measures for the development of the western region into
line with the 10th Five-Year Plan for National Economic
and Social Development (2001-2005); and
Sixth, to combine the assistance from the State and all
quarters of society with the self-reliance and hard work
of all the cadres and masses in the western region. While
the State increases capital input and policy support to
the west, the cadres and masses in the region should base
the western region development on relying on their own efforts
to achieve the comprehensive development of economy and
society.
The overall plan for western region development has been
listed a special plan for the country's 10th Five-Year Plan
for National Economic and Social Development. Initial materials
for the overall plan had been compiled by the end of June.
In the near future, opinions of relevant localities and
departments will be canvassed, and the opinions and suggestions
of all quarters of society will be listened to. The various
provinces (autonomous regions and municipality) in the west
and the competent departments of the State Council, in line
with the central authorities' guiding thought and overall
plan and in combination with the effort to formulate the
10th Five-Year Plan, must do a good job in drafting the
development plan of each locality and each trade. The State
Development Planning Commission and the Western Region Development
Office of the State Council will ensure the dovetail and
balance of the overall plan and the plans of various fields.
The overall plan will be initially formed before the end
of this year and begin to be put into practice next year.
3. Implementing the Infrastructure Construction and Ecological
Environmental Protection Work
This year, the infrastructure construction in the west
will be accelerated. First, focus will be put on the 10
major projects with available conditions for starting construction.
Second, construction of the 78 large and medium-sized projects
under construction will be speeded up. Third, efforts will
be made to speed up the preparatory work for such major
projects as west-to-north natural gas transmission, west-to-east
electricity transmission, the railway stretching to Tibet,
and boundary outlet railways.
At present, some of the 10 major projects have started
construction upon the approval of relevant authorities,
while fairly great progress has been made in the preparatory
work for other projects. The 78 large and medium-sized projects
under construction expect to use a total of 32.6 billion
yuan of investment this year, with 42 wholly or partially
going into operation within this year. In the latter half
of this year, a good job will be done in the project preparatory
work, in expediting the process of the projects under construction,
and in the work for the early starting of construction of
new projects, thereby ensuring a substantial progress in
the western region's infrastructure construction.
Emphasis of the ecological environmental protection work
will be put on successfully advancing the pilot projects
for returning farmland to forests and grasslands. Since
the beginning of this year, various localities, putting
into practice the principles of the meeting of the State
Council Western Region Development Leading Group in real
earnest, have acted promptly and made fairly rapid progress
in the work. According to the statistics provided by the
State Forestry Bureau, in the first six months of this year
the 13 provinces (autonomous regions and municipality) undertaking
the pilot project returned 3.67 million mu (15 mu=1 hectare)
of farmland to forests and grasslands and planted trees
and grass on 4.637 million mu of barren hills and wasteland
suited to afforestation, which accounted for 71.3 percent
and 71.6 percent of respective plans, with the survival
rate of trees and grass averaging 72 percent. Steady progress
has also been made in key ecological environment construction
projects, such as the natural forest resources conservation
project, natural grassland rehabilitation and construction
project, desertification prevention and control project,
water and soil conservation and comprehensive treatment
project, and seed improvement project. In the latter half
of this year, the various localities should implement the
principles of the State Council Western Region Development
Leading Group's discussion meeting on the work of returning
farmland to forests and grasslands and put into practice
the pilot demonstration work.
4. Intensifying the Work of Agriculture, Science, Technology,
Education and Legislation
To implement the western region development program, it
is necessary to consolidate and strengthen the status of
agriculture as the foundation of the national economy, and
expedite the restructuring and development of agriculture
and rural economy in the western region. Only with the development
of agriculture and rural economy and the constant increase
in the income of farmers and the significant improvement
in their living standards, can the western region development
form a strong mass base and lay a sold material foundation
for the further development of the local economy and the
smooth progress of the western region development program.
Competent departments are studying and drafting documents
on further expediting the agricultural development in the
western region, so as to intensify the guidance over the
region's agricultural and rural economic work.
To speed up the development of science and technology in
the western region, the Government has selected 19 key projects
involving environmental protection and ecological conservation
and the value increase of local advantageous resources as
the high-tech industry demonstration projects. To quicken
the cultivation of high-level professionals in the western
region, the State has decided to use government loans to
support the infrastructure construction of some institutions
of higher education in the west. The first stage focuses
on the infrastructure construction of 85 universities and
colleges in the west, which expects to enlarge their enrolment
by around 10 percent. In the latter half of this year, government
loans will continue to be allocated to support the development
of education in the west. The assistance offered by
the State in the infrastructure construction and the computer
network construction in some institutions of higher education
in the west will further enhance the quality and capacity
of the higher education in the region. Meanwhile, efforts
will be made to equip the county-level vocational and technical
education and training centers of a batch of selected poor
counties to promote the training of applicable technology
and the education of popular science. To improve the work
related to the introduction and cultivation of talents,
the Western Region Development Office of the State Council
will join efforts with relevant departments to put forward
policy measures and special plans on further accelerating
the development of scientific, technological and educational
undertakings and the introduction and cultivation of talented
people in the western region.
During this year's NPC and CPPCC sessions, some NPC deputies
and CPPCC members advanced motions on the legislation concerning
western region development. At the recent 10th meeting of
the Ninth CPPCC Standing Committee on western region development,
some members suggested that to ensure the sound and steady
progress of the western region development program and prevent
the phenomena of each locality or department going its own
way and carrying out the development program willfully and
disorderly, responsible authorities should formulate regulations
and laws on west development to advance the process accordance
to the law. In the latter half of this year, we will strengthen
the investigation and study of the legislation plan and
put forward related proposals.
Preparations for the Western
Forum of China
