2013/04/06
On April 6, 2013, ICC-NDRC held a press
conference on the Boao Forum for Asia and released an opening-up index of China
cities. The conference was moderated by Cao Wenlian, Director-General of ICC-NDRC
and Vice Secretary-General of CCIEE. Zhang Xiaoqiang, Vice Chairman of NDRC,
Wei Jianguo, Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of CCIEE, and Li Xuedong,
Deputy Director-General of the International Department of NDRC, attended the press
conference and took questions from the media.

Last year, ICC released the opening up ranking
of 31 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions in China. This year, the
ranking included 32 provincial capitals and cities specifically designated in
the state plan. The study report concluded the opening-up level of each city based
on its social, economic and technological performance. Shenzhen, Guangzhou and
Xiamen are ranked at the top, listed as Gold Cities of Opening-up; Hangzhou,
Ningbo, Nanjing, Dalian and Qingdao come second, listed as Silver Cities of
Opening-up; Wuhan ranks top among cities in Middle China and thus being regarded
the star of opening-up in Middle China; Chengdu and Xi'an are stars of opening-up
in West China.
Zhang Xiaoqiang pointed out that China had
to achieve a new type of urbanization with high quality.
This is not simply about more buildings, better ecological conditions and more
employment opportunities. More importantly, it is about equal access to public
services. This requires institutional reforms and supportive policies,
including the registered household reform, urban and rural land reform,
etc. Zhang believed the development of core cities can boost regional
development, and a higher level of opening-up will expedite urbanization.
At the press conference, Wei Jianguo said
that the study was important for promoting opening-up and urbanization. Cities
of China should focus more on the quality of development and promote opening-up
instead of developing aimlessly.