Ancient county looks to the future

Located in the south of Central China's Henan province, Huangchuan county is often likened to East China's famous tourist destination Suzhou, because of its splendid natural beauty.

Covering an area of 1,666 square kilometers, the county has a population of 800,000. It has been listed as one of the six cities and counties of regional influence in the province, and is a model of market-oriented, industrialized agriculture, a national base of grain production and flower growing, involving more than 50 leading enterprises.

Ducks, pigs, flowers and feathers are among the most important agricultural products in Huangchuan.

More than 100 million ducks and 1.5 million pigs are raised in the county, with complete processing chains.

Flowers are grown in 16,000 hectares of field, including 12 large-scale farms. Around 40 key enterprises, employing 80,000 people, are involved in growing flowers and garden design.

Feather processing provides nearly 50,000 jobs in more than 50 enterprises, making the county a major feather production and export base.

Grain production in the county has increased for seven consecutive years and reached a total of 700 million kilograms last year.

Huangchuan is also home to one of the province's first petty loan companies. Local banks and five guarantee companies have also established offices in the county.

More than 35 percent of the county's rural residentsare involved in 650 cooperative associations, as the local government is promoting a credit model that combines the interests of companies, farmers, financial organizations and insurance.

Nearly 70 new residential communities are under construction and around 610,000 residents in the countryside, 94 percent of the rural population, are covered by healthcare insurance. More than 250 new health centers have been founded in recent years.

Historical importance

Dating back more than 4,000 years ago, Huangchuan boasts many cultural heritage sites. The former Huang Kingdom from China's Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC), six kilometers west of the county, is listed as one of the national protection sites.

Other six historical sites are under provincial protection.

Bordering Hubei and Anhui provinces, Huangchuan has been a transportation hub and a regional business center since ancient times.

Now two railroads and two highways connect the county. There are also two optical cable lines and two gas pipelines traversing it, giving it national strategic importance.

The local government also plans to develop 10 trading centers in the county, aiming at creating a regional logistics hub for building materials, gasoline, food products and small commodities.

Industrial projects

The government of Huangchuan has attracted more than 1,200 investors to the county. More than 100 projects, worth a total of 14.6 billion yuan ($2.2 billion), have been secured, 33 of which were signed last year.

"Our promotional campaigns have not only helped introduce capital and create jobs, but also broadened our horizons, and made the county's economy more open to the outside world," said a local official.

There are 119 large-scale companies in the county, which generated 2.5 billion yuan in added value last year.

Huaying Group, a Huangchuan-headquartered poultry raising and processing company, was listed in 2009, the first one in the province after China's initial public offerings restarted that year.

The government invested 1.52 billion yuan last year, to improve infrastructure in the industrial zone, which is home to more than 40 enterprises with total revenues of 5.6 billion yuan.

In addition, a series of infrastructure projects are planned for the coming years, to achieve an integrated development between the urban and rural areas.

(China Daily 06/01/2011 page56)