Qingdao to boost construction of demonstration zone

The eastern coastal city of Qingdao in Shandong province will accelerate the construction of the China-Shanghai Cooperation Organization Demonstration Zone for Local Economic and Trade Cooperation, officials said.

Qingdao will build it into a new platform for Belt and Road cooperation, said Wang Qingxian, Party secretary of Qingdao at a working conference on Feb 12.

At the conference, officials from the Qingdao bureau of commerce, Qingdao bureau of industry and information technology, Qingdao bureau of culture and tourism and other departments reported on the overall progress made in the construction of the demonstration zone.

They also detailed its proposed development as a center of international logistics, modern trade, two-way investment, maritime cooperation and tourism and culture.

Wang said that local departments had done a great deal of work building the zone and have achieved remarkable results in policy research, formulating plans, project construction and other aspects.

"According to the requirements of the central authorities, the demonstration zone is designed to create a better platform for international cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative and develop collaboration in logistics, trade, investment, tourism and culture", Wang said.

"We need to take a broader view of the development of the demonstration zone from the overall perspective of China's opening-up and development."

He said that the demonstration zone would be crucial to serving both the nation and Qingdao's strategies, to deepen opening-up and international cooperation.

During the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit in Qingdao in June 2018, Chinese authorities gave their support for the development of the China-SCO demonstration zone in Qingdao.

The zone's overall construction plan was passed during the ninth meeting of the central committee for deepening overall reform on July 24, 2019.

The Ministry of Commerce has listed four major tasks to build the demonstration zone: forging a regional logistics center; building a modern trade center; promoting production capacity cooperation and constructing a center for two-way investment; and building a business, tourism and cultural exchange center.

The short-term goal is to build a seaport for the Asia-Pacific market and form a demonstration area for exchanges and cooperation with cities in SCO countries.

The medium-and long-term goal is to build a pilot area for two-way investment and trade system innovation with SCO countries, a gathering area for enterprises to start their businesses and a pioneering area for local economic and trade cooperation under the BRI.