Economy

Special economic zone good example for developing countries

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-09-08 10:29
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CAIRO - China's opening up and reform policy launched more than three decades ago have served as a good example for other developing countries, an Egyptian official said Tuesday.

Ahmed Wali, vice chairman of the Egypt-China Friendship Association, said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua on Tuesday that China's Shenzhen Special Economic Zone (SEZ) represented the starting point of China's opening up and reform.

China marked the 30th anniversary of its first special economic zone on Monday. Once being a small fishing village in south China' s Guangdong province, Shenzhen has developed into a booming metropolis home to a number of high-tech firms and manufacturing factories.

Economic zones, which enjoy some special policies for development, have become an important experimental field in China' s reform and opening up process.

"I witnessed the progress in Shenzhen during my last visit to China two years ago," Wali said, adding that it has been changed in 30 years from a small village into a big city with a population of more than 10 million.

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The development of Shenzhen SEZ is reflected both in the improvement of people's living standards and increase of income and the preservation of traditions, he added.

Other developing countries can learn from this successful development mode while taking into consideration their own circumstances, Wali said.

As to Egypt's development, Wali said his own country is also applying economic reforms in many places such as northwestern Suez region, where inhabit a large number of Chinese manufactories, and Port Said.

"We are going toward this direction with the assistance of our Chinese friends as we hope them to be promising and strengthen Egyptian-Chinese cooperation," Wali said.

He called on Chinese investors to exploit the advantage of the distinctive geography of Egypt in Africa, Asia and Europe and put more investment in this country to boost bilateral economic ties.

China has achieved fast economic growth over the past few decades. "The development takes place not only in the SEZs. Other regions in China also benefit from the development. For example, the Qinghai-Tibet railway has linked the southwestern autonomous region of Tibet more closely with other Chinese provinces," he said.