High-quality development founded on innovation and high-tech industries is the focal point of a newly released plan for the Xiongan New Area, which analysts say will boost investment and accelerate construction of transport infrastructure connecting the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cluster.
The full-context plan, released on April 22, set 38 key targets to build Xiongan into an innovation-driven, smart, ecologically friendly and easy-to-live-in area.
The key targets include the ratio of research and development expenditure in the local GDP, the number of patents registered by every 10,000 people, big data’s contribution to urban and emergency management and air quality improvement. For residents, the most eye-catching part of the plan could be that everything is accessible within a 15-minute drive or walk.
Last April, China announced the establishment of the Xiongan New Area－which has “lasting importance for the millennium to come”－spanning three counties in Hebei province, southwest of downtown Beijing. The move is to transfer noncapital functions from Beijing and boost integration of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei cluster.
Construction of Xiongan－another new area of “national significance” following the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone and Shanghai Pudong New Area－is expected to be accelerated this year after the design and planning is completed, said Zhang Zhongjie, an analyst at Huajin Securities. Bidding and construction on transport projects, including railways and highways, will probably start soon.
Xiongan won’t be made into a megacity and will manage urban construction in an orderly way, Yang Baojun, president of the China Academy of Urban Planning and Design, told Xinhua News Agency. It will be built as a pleasant city with a balance between people’s work and living, he said.
