SHENZHEN is one of nine Chinese cities ranked among the world s top 100 livable cities. A survey conducted by a British nongovernment organization ranked Shenzhen at No. 82.
It was the 10th year The Economist Intelligence Unit had ranked the world s most livable cities. Vancouver in Canada was No. 1 for the fifth year in a row. It was followed by Melbourne in Australia, Toronto in Canada, Vienna in Austria and Calgary in Canada.
Hong Kong was No. 31, the highest of Chinese cities in the list, followed by Tianjin, Suzhou, Beijing, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Dalian, Guangzhou and Qingdao.
According to the organization, good social security (83) and infrastructure (82) contributed most to Shenzhen s strength. However, the city was far behind other cities in health care, education, culture and environment.
Shenzhen is known in China for its good infrastructure construction, however, it is rather unbalanced, said Cao Zhigang, a Ph.D. researcher at Zhongshan University in Guangzhou.
He said infrastructure development in Longgang, Bao an, Pingshan and Guangming was lagging, compared with Futian, Luohu and Nanshan districts. The four areas were integrated into the special economic zone last year.
As integration proceeds, unbalanced development is expected to change, Cao said.
On the other hand, medical services, which the survey listed as one of the weakest aspects, had long been criticized in the city. Many Shenzhen residents go to Guangzhou or other major cities when they need medical treatment for serious diseases.
Many complain of long waiting times before seeing a doctor. According to official figures, the ratio of hospital beds in Shenzhen is 17.6 hospital beds per 10,000 people, far behind the average of 60.1 in Guangzhou and 64.3 in Beijing. (SD News)
