Yangtze River Delta plan gets approval from govt

Workers at an electronics production line in Zhenjiang, a city in the Yangtze River Delta region. [China Daily]

BEIJING - The State Council has cleared the Regional Plan for the Yangtze River Delta aimed at developing the region into a key international gateway for the Asia-Pacific region, the National Development and Reform Commission said on Monday.

Analysts, however, feel that the plan is only a guideline and it is necessary for the region to upgrade its industries, improve technological innovation abilities and expand market entry.

The ambitious plan also focuses on turning the region into an important global center for the modern service industry and advanced manufacturing industry, as well as a world-class cluster of cities.

The Yangtze River Delta region refers to Shanghai, and Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, China's major hubs of finance and private economy.

Analysts said the region still faces huge challenges in implementing the plan.

Wang Xiaoguang, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Governance, said that due to the relatively low level of manufacturing and the small proportion of the service industry, the region might have some difficulties in achieving the modernization goal by 2020 as envisaged by the government.

Currently, the service industry accounts for 60 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) in Shanghai, while it accounts for only 40 percent in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, Wang said.

"It will be a long and tough challenge to reach the average level in developed countries, in which the service industry accounts for at least 70 percent of GDP," he said.

Promoting independent technology innovation should remain the top priority for the region, said Zhou Minliang, a researcher at the Institute of Industrial Economics under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"Only if technological innovation ability is enhanced can the region sharpen its competitive edge in the long run," he said.

Zhou said that the task of transforming the Yangtze River Delta as an important global center for modern service industry and advanced manufacturing needs support from all stakeholders. Local governments and enterprises in the region should shoulder responsibility for environmental protection as pollution concerns are expected to increase once the economy expands.

"It is also important to strengthen regional integration," said Chen Jianjun, director of the Research Center for Regional and Urban Economy at Zhejiang University. Market forces should take the lead in the integration process, he said.

"The backbone of integration in the delta are enterprises, which have been quite active in business exchanges," he said. "The government's role lies in reducing inappropriate administrative intervention and expand market entry."

The nation could think of a development plan for the Bohai Sea area also for more balanced regional development, he said.

The Yangtze River Delta covers an area of 210,700 sq km and has an edge in location, abundant natural resources and solid economic foundations.