Stability key to Xinjiang's development

The Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region maintained social stability and achieved healthy economic growth last year, Shohrat Zakir, the chairman of the regional government, said on Monday.

"Xinjiang people from all ethnic groups have a growing sense of happiness and security," he said in an exclusive interview with China Daily on the sidelines of the first session of the 13th National People's Congress in Beijing.

Tourism is seen as a barometer of Xinjiang's stability and harmony. The region received more than 100 million visits from tourists in 2017, an increase of 32.4 percent year-on-year, he said. "The figure shows that stability is the precondition of development and the foundation of people's well-being.