Zhongshan's tech expertise draws global investments

Zhongshan is the birthplace of China's revolutionary leader Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925).

It neighbors the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions and has a permanent resident population of 3.21 million.

A major city at the heart of the Pearl River Delta region, Zhongshan is at the forefront of economic development in South China's Guangdong province, according to Xue Xiaofeng, the city's Party chief.

"We have 27 Global Fortune 500 companies, 35 State-level industrial bases and 18 technological innovation towns specializing in such fields as lighting and household appliances," Xue said at the Zhongshan Trade, Investment and Top Talent Fair, which ends on Friday.

Xue introduced the city's many investment opportunities to businesspeople from around the world during the fair.

"We boast a national high-tech zone, the Zhongshan Torch High-tech Industrial Development Zone, which has a strong industrial foundation and technological innovation capability," Xue said.

He also spoke of the Tsuihang New Area, proposed by Guangdong Party chief Hu Chunhua in 2015, which is planned to become Zhongshan's industrial and innovation center.

Covering nearly 230 square kilometers of land, the new area is divided into five districts covering innovation, advanced manufacturing, cultural exchanges, personnel training and international tourism, plus a central business district.

Tsuihang has many advantages as a location to start a business, Xue said.

"The Tsuihang New Area has an extensive public transportation system and a beautiful natural environment. It also established an innovation and entrepreneurship equity fund last year, which has supported several cutting-edge technology projects."

By the end of 2015, the new area had attracted 75 projects in the fields of biomedicine, medical appliances, smart devices and healthcare services, with combined investment of 68 billion yuan ($10.44 billion).

The Sino-Swiss (European) Industrial Park, part of the new area, is an "important platform for international investment and technology and cultural cooptation", Xue said.

The park had attracted 18 projects as of February and is negotiating on another 14 projects, covering new energy, advanced equipment manufacturing, electronic information and modern services.

Zhongshan is now home to 83 European companies and eight Swiss companies, and has lower labor costs than Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, according to Xue.

He said the city also highlights the protection of intellectual property rights, and it was awarded the title of IP Demonstration City by the State Intellectual Property Ofice. It has 84 law firms and is setting up a patent protection, financing and trading platform.

"We have designed many preferential policies for talented people to settle here, such as education for their children, housing subsidies and other allowances," Xue said.

To attract more professionals, Zhongshan launched a talent festival - the Top Talent Networking Zhongshan - in 2014, as part of the trade and talent fair.

A highlight of this year's festival, from Wednesday through Friday, is a project matchmaking activity, which has attracted nearly 40 European and US companies, 42 Chinese and overseas PhD holders, and representatives from about 100 local companies.

A talent development blue paper was issued during the fair, which analyzed the city's human resources and forecast the trend of Zhongshan's talent strategy.

This year's Zhongshan Trade, Investment and Top Talent Fair had a theme of "Open Innovation, Win-win Cooperation".

During the event, 144 projects were signed, with total contract value of $6.32 billion.

haonan@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 03/25/2016 page16)