Roundup: China Develops Win-Win Strategy for Economy, EnvironmentThe Chinese government is committed to developing a win-win strategy for its economic development and environmental protection, a senior official said in Hong Kong on November 6."Environmental protection can be managed while pursuing higher productivity level and better quality of life. Actually the two goals are complimentary to each other," Xie Zhenhua, director of the State Environmental Protection Administration of China, declared at the 12th World Productivity Congress (WPC) November 6 opened in Hong Kong. Delivering a key-note speech on "Sustainable development: Green Strategies", the minister said, "The so-called 'green productivity' is an important part of the advanced productivity and is key to achieve sustainable development." The Chinese government attached great importance to environmental protection during the Ninth Five-Year Plan period (1996-2000) and much progress had been made, he said. Statistics show that in the past five years, the government had closed down more than 60,000 small factories releasing serious pollutants and the absolute amount of main pollutants had decreased about 10 to 15 percent. In 2000, about 97.7 percent of the 230,000 enterprises that produce industrial waste reached the national standards for environmental protection. Xie announced that the Tenth Five-Year Plan (2001-2006) will be "a greener Five-Year plan" as the government will continue to strengthen law enforcement, apply high technology, increase investment and adopt more favorable economic policies to environmental protection. For the 2001-2005 period, total investment in environmental protection is expected to reach 700 billion yuan, accounting for about 1.3 percent of China's GDP, according to Xie. During the period, the amount of pollutants will drop by another 10 percent from the level of year 2000 while keeping a GDP growth rate of about seven percent. At that time, China will have a forest coverage of 35 percent and many environmental friendly cities and towns will be planned and built. Priority will also be given to efforts for environmental protection in the vast rural area and the development of the Great West. A series of measures will be taken by the government to enhance the environmental protection awareness of the farmers and accelerate infrastructure construction in the countryside and the West, Xie said. Xie predicted the environmental protection industry will have great potential in China in the new century. The new industry had an annual output of 180 billion Yuan currently and will have an annual growth rate of 15 to 20 percent as the demand for investment in pollution control will reached 700 billion Yuan in the next five years, he said. "This provides good opportunities for international industrialists to enter into this big market of 'Green Productivity'," he added. The minister concluded his speech by promising that China is willing to develop more cooperation and communication with foreign countries and companies in the protection and betterment of the environment. The biennially WPC, under the auspices of the World Confederation of Productivity Science, addresses contemporary strategies, innovative approaches, new principles and best practices in productivity development for enhancing competitiveness. Hong Kong and Beijing, jointly representing the People's Republic of China, host this year's WPC under the theme of "Creating Wealth in the Connected Economy". About 1,500 international speakers and delegates from over 40 countries and regions attended the congress. |
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