Changchun new area looking forward

Two ports, four commercial centers, 10 industrial zones, three economic pillars as well as its unparalleled environment will soon illuminate the future of Changchun New Area. After taking shape, the projects will not only be a breakthrough for Changchun in terms of adjusting its economic structure, but also provide a motive for the city, Jilin province and Northeast China to develop their new economy, too.

It is fitting for a place labeled a "new area" to focus on the future.

As such, Changchun New Area is planning to set up an innovative industrial system focusing on sectors of advanced manufacturing and modern services and agriculture by the end of 2020, the area's officials said.

The new area's location in Northeast China was approved by the State Council in February.

The area aims to become a new and powerful engine for the economic development of Jilin province, of which Changchun is the capital.

The new area's industrial system will feature "five plus six plus two", officials said.

Five refers to one advantaged sector, namely the auto industry, and the four strategic emerging industries of advanced equipment manufacturing, optoelectronic information, biological medicine and new materials and energy.

Six stands for the six modern service industries: science and technology finance, information services, cultural creativity, trade logistics, elder care and tourism and MICE (meeting, incentive, conference and exhibition).

The "two" represents modern agriculture's two emerging industries, refined foods and urban agriculture.

Advanced manufacturing in Jilin province has developed quickly in recent years along with the national strategy for reviving Northeast China, an old industrial center.

Changchun New Area plans to grow into a smart equipment manufacturing center in China, focusing on three key fields: crucial parts, intelligent control systems and machinery and basic manufacturing equipment.

The area also aims to become the Silicon Valley of China's auto sector, paying close attention to trends in transnational corporations' automotive technology.

The area will be able to produce both finished automobiles and auto parts.

Local officials said Jilin has solid industrial foundations in fields such as new energy vehicles, lithium batteries and battery materials.

They said Changchun New Area will build a whole industrial chain for new energy automobiles, focusing on blade electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and promote research and development as well as the manufacturing of key components such as high-power batteries.

The area will, based on Chang Guang Satellite Technology, develop the space industry and become a nationally influential center for satellite application demonstration, R&D and manufacturing.

It also hopes to attract leading companies such as Guangdong Longhao Aviation Group Co Ltd to help it to become an important general aviation industrial center in northeastern China.

The area plans to use the snow and ice resources of Jilin by dedicating resources to the development and manufacturing of ice and snow equipment.

It has attracted a high-end ice and snow equipment manufacturing project from Shandong Taishan Sports Industry Group, which it hopes will make the area an important production center for such equipment.

Changchun New Area also hopes to house the largest biological medicine industrial park in Asia.

Related organizations in the area can already produce 24 kinds of vaccines, which the area hopes will drive the development of a large biological vaccine industrial cluster.

The area is home to GeneScience Pharmaceuticals, a large genetic engineering pharmaceutical enterprise, and will use the company's needs and experiences to develop a related industrial chain.

New materials and energy technology production is expected to depend heavily on research organizations and universities such as the Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Jilin University.

The field will prioritize development of new materials, new energy automobiles and biomass energy technologies and related products.

Officials at Changchun New Area said that promoting modern agriculture is a fundamental way to help farmers to increase income and boost agricultural productivity nationwide.

The area views modern agriculture one of its sectors with the most potential. It will depend on Jilin's rich natural resources, solid agricultural foundation and the strength of its brands' R&D to build modern agricultural systems.

It aims to improve production of vegetables, meat, eggs and milk and help the country become more self-sufficient in fresh food.

The emerging area will also boost rural tourism based on agriculture and build modern agricultural parks that promote technology and provide products to visitors.

The United Nations Office for Project Services and Changchun New Area agreed to develop an international demonstration area for the agriculture and food safety industries.

The project, with total investment valued at 30 billion yuan ($4.35 billion), will use technologies like big data, cloud computing and geographic information systems to tackle food safety problems.

The project plans to stretch industrial chains and expand industrial scale by adding fields such as advanced biological science and technology, finance, e-commerce trade of agricultural products and food safety accountability systems.

The area plans to use its strengths in high-tech information technology to develop an internationally-influential modern services sector.

Trade logistics is among those modern services the area will center around, focusing on transport, e-commerce and opening-up.

Aviation, railway and road logistics will also be promoted in the area, which will build some e-commerce logistics parks to expedite cross-border e-commerce.

The area also focuses on development of parks specifically built to serve leading industries.

The area hopes to foster 10 symbolic parks, including a high-end equipment manufacturing industrial park, a new energy vehicle industry park, a biomedicine industrial park and an aerospace information industrial park.

The 10 parks that contain projects of service platforms and incubators will help to promote the opening-up of the industrial system in the area.

Planning for integrated, innovative development

Changchun New Area's overall planning for 2016-30 offers comprehensive and detailed analysis of the area's leading industries, said Li Guanghui, vice-president at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation at the Ministry of Commerce.

Li said economic development in Northeast China has slowed in recent years, including in Jilin province, of which Changchun is the capital. He explained that leading industrial systems have not been built, and that economic growth did not have strong support systems.

According to Li, Changchun New Area plans to expand and extend the area's value chain and promote its core competitiveness globally by fostering several large sectors such as automobiles, high-end equipment manufacturing, optoelectronic information and biological medicine. By doing so, the area's industries will support wider economic development, Li added.

The plan also proposes opening-up and establishing innovative industrial systems, Li said, adding that undertaking such activity in the new area reflects Jilin's economic development ambitions. In his eyes, Changchun New Area, as an engine for Jilin's future development, needs to closely integrate with the wider province and Northeast China.

Bai Xuejie, a professor at the Institute of Economic and Social Development of Nankai University, said that aside from production, national-level new areas gradually improve other city functions as well, such as services and management. She added that the new area aims to integrate local industries and the city, becoming engines of regional economic growth.

Various development zones in China mostly focus on industrial activities, with limited impact on regional economic growth, Bai said.

According to Bai, Changchun New Area takes this into account and pays considerable attention to fostering productive services, such as technology and finance, information services and trade logistics as it establishes opening-up and innovative industrial systems.

Liu Binglian, dean at the Institute of Economic and Social Development of Nankai University, said the new area has scientific and reasonable strategies and goals in terms of industrial system design.

According to Liu, choosing the right locations depends on taking many factors to create distinctive industrial clusters.

The development process should consider both national and international economic elements, and balance the external environment with industrial clusters' internal operations, said Liu.

Innovation-driven development is not limited to high-tech sectors, as traditional industries may also promote entrepreneurship and industrial innovation, he added.

Changchun New Area not only supports strategic emerging industries, such as biomedicine and new materials, but also is boosting the competitiveness of some advanced sectors such as automobiles and agricultural product processing.

Song Mengxing

songmengxing@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 02/13/2017 page29)