SW Provinces Enhance Cooperation in DevelopmentThree provinces, two autonomous regions and two cities are joining hands for economic take-off, vowing to intensify their co-operation to boost the development of the vast western areas during an ongoing conference on economy co-ordination.Representatives from Yunnan, Sichuan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Tibet, and Chengdu and Chongqing have also discussed the opening of markets in the southwestern China. The meeting focuses on joint efforts to improve the investment environment by accelerating the construction of telecommunications and transportation facilities and other infastructure projects. The provinces, autonomous regions and cities also expect cooperation on strengthening the protection and construction of the environment along the upper reaches of the Yangtze River in order to maintain sustainable development. Since the first such conference was held in 1984, cooperation in the region has been intensified. More than 17,000 projects, which involved more than 65 billion yuan (about 7.8 billion U.S. dollars) investment have been completed jointly by provinces and cities in southwest China. During the last 15 years, a transportation network including 64 highways with a total length of 1,500 km, a railway from Nanning to Kunming and 160 airlines have been launched in southwestern China. Joint efforts have also been made in the development of natural resources, the energy industry and tourism. |
| People's Daily Online --- http://www.peopledaily.com.cn/english/ |