Work report heralds new age of development

By Yuan Shenggao (China Daily)

Updated: 2023-01-20

63c9dc58a3107776aed59f5e.png

Members of the Shanxi Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference share views on the government work report. [Photo by Liu Tong for China Daily]

The government work report, which was delivered by Jin Xiangjun, newly elected governor of Shanxi, at the annual session of the Shanxi Provincial People's Congress held from Jan 12 to 16, is both inspiring and encouraging, said delegates to the congress.

After hearing the work report on Jan 12, congress delegate Zhao Yajing, who is also the Party secretary of Dingxiang county, made a phone call to Wang Jianyong, board chairman of Dingsheng Casting Industry based in the county, to inform him of the latest information conveyed in the report.

Dingsheng is one of the leading manufacturers of flange, a product that has helped Dingxiang win nationwide fame.

Zhao told Wang that the government work report proposed developing characteristic towns and cities specializing in famed products that include flange, noting that it "should be an opportunity for local enterprises like Dingsheng to grow".

According to Zhao, Dingxiang county is now home to 189 manufacturers of flange, including 26 large-scale companies, which are capable of producing more than 2,000 varieties of flange used in a range of fields like petrochemicals, power generation, and aerospace and astronautics. The local industry has a total annual output of 1 million metric tons and has offered jobs to more than 40,000 people.

The official said Shanxi's plan to foster characteristic industrial towns will help to increase the influence of Dingxiang's flanges in both domestic and international markets.

Delegate Hu Dawei, who was the board chairman of Shanxi Tianbao Group, a wind power generation component producer based in the city of Xinzhou, said he is encouraged by the emphasis on the digital economy in the government work report.

"We at Tianbao are using digital technologies to build a 5G-based cloud platform for the smart production of wind power components," Hu said. "We hope we can help more local manufacturers upgrade with digitalization by sharing our experience."

As the government work report has proposed a variety of targeted measures for the recovery of cultural tourism and other service industries, delegate Zhao Xuejun, who is the mayor of Taiyuan's Yingze district, said he is now more optimistic about the development of the district.

Yingze is a hub of the service industry in Taiyuan, with the sector accounting for nearly 90 percent of local GDP, according to the official.

He said the district's Bell Tower Street, Zhongzheng Tianjie, Shangma Street and Nanhai Street are renowned commercial blocks in Taiyuan, attracting a great number of diners, shoppers and tourists. While protecting and renovating its historical streets and blocks, Yingze is also developing itself into a modern financial hub by attracting a great number of financial institutions.

Chen Guanghua, board chairman of Great Wall Electrics based in Taiyuan, is a member of the Shanxi Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, who listened to the government work report on-site on Jan 12.

He said the targeted measures proposed by the report for supporting private businesses is the most encouraging news for entrepreneurs like himself.

"Private businesses are yet to recover from the pressure and uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic over the past three years," Chen said. "And now we feel exhilarated after listening to the government work report."

He said the report deems boosting market confidence as one of the priorities on the government's agenda for this year. It promises to forge a better, predicable business environment for market entities, whether they are State-owned or privately run.

The promises include a stable policy framework, easier market access, streamlined administrative service procedures and whole-process assistance for businesses.

For agricultural and rural development, the government work report proposed modernization, developing specialty produce with local characteristics, fostering leading enterprises for agricultural products processing and integrating farming with tourism and commerce.

Congress delegate Wu Zhuqin is the board chairwoman of Xinda Agricultural Development based in Beitian township in Jinzhong city. She said Beitian is now a famed farming base of high-quality apples.

The delegate said that Xinda is now helping the town increase its fame by developing various processed apple products and increasing the industry's recognition through branding and marketing efforts, including developing online and offline sales channels.

Zheng Na, Yang Wenjun, Zhang Jufeng, Li Lian, Gao Jianhua and Yan Jie contributed to this story.