Premier Li: Make Guangdong world class in business

2019-03-08
China Daily

Premier Li Keqiang called on Guangdong province to further open up and build a world-class business environment to attract more foreign investment.

Premier Li joined a panel discussion on March 7 with national lawmakers from Guangdong, which contributes about one-tenth of China’s GDP.

Praising the province’s achievements last year, the Premier said it should now work with the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions to develop the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

Guangdong should also accelerate the transformation of old drivers into new ones to boost high-quality development and improve people’s livelihoods, Premier Li said.

Seven National People’s Congress deputies from the Guangdong delegation spoke about high-quality development, opportunities brought by the Greater Bay Area, independent innovation, the manufacturing sector, rural vitalization and traditional cultural heritage.

Foreign investment in Guangdong reached 145 billion yuan ($22 billion) last year while its GDP rose 6.8 percent year-on-year to 9.73 trillion yuan, said Ma Xingrui, governor of Guangdong. The province’s imports and exports hit 7.16 trillion yuan, accounting for 23.5 percent of China’s foreign trade, the Premier said.

Last year, Guangdong signed an agreement with the German chemical giant BASF to establish a new chemical base in the coastal city of Zhanjiang. It also inked a deal with ExxonMobil of the United States to build a chemical plant. Both projects are expected to cost $10 billion.

Zhang Shuofu, Party secretary of Guangzhou, said his city aims to build a modernized and internationalized business environment and is striving to become an innovation center for science and technology. The city will focus on new energy vehicles and biomedicines going forward, the Premier said.

In the afternoon, Premier Li joined a panel discussion with deputies from Qinghai province, known as China’s “water tower.” Qinghai made notable progress last year and should coordinate economic development with ecological protection, the Premier said. Premier Li called on the province to develop a green economy and firmly protect the country’s water resources.

Local advantages should be used to develop industries that fit its conditions, the premier said. The Premier urged officials to make further efforts in poverty alleviation, since Qinghai still has 77,000 people with incomes below the poverty line.

Last year, 176,000 people were lifted from poverty in Qinghai. The province aims to get the remainder out of poverty by the end of this year.

The Premier also called for further integration of the internet with education and healthcare to improve locals’ well-being.