By ZHANG XIWEN

“TEN years ago, the entire Minhang District occupied 370-square-kilometers of which its urban area covered just 15 square kilometers. Today the Minhang 130-square-kilometer urban district tastefully abounds in high rise buildings, national level industrial gardens, and neat, broad streets,” says Shanghai Minhang District Chief Executive Wang Hongquan proudly, as he stands before a scale model of this burgeoning district. Minhang is destined to become a major facet of Shanghai’s ongoing expansion into an international economic, finance, trade and shipping center.

In 2004, Minhang ranked second only to Shanghai’s Pudong New Area in terms of total economic volume, financial income, total investment volume, exports, and contribution ratio of technological/economic growth. It is expected to play an increasingly major role in the municipality’s economic and social development.

Favorable Development Conditions

Located in Shanghai’s central area, Minhang offers comprehensive and convenient transportation, comprising eight north-south and 14 east-west roads. To its northeast is the Xinzhuang-Minhang elevated light railway, and to its southeast lies Pudong International Airport. Its 500 kilometers of crisscrossing road network also includes the Shanghai Outer Ring Road, Shanghai-Hangzhou Expressway, and the Xinfengjin Expressway, all of which conjoin at Xinzhuang.

Investors are drawn to Minhang by the efficiency of its local government. It has established a certificate and license registration center, 27 government departments, and 63 service counters providing 190 services in the district. “When I first started doing business in Minhang, we signed the letter of intent on March 21, and got the license just eight days later. That’s what I call efficiency!” declares Taiwan investor Wang Guoda, chairman of the board of Shanghai Reeco Knitting Co., Ltd. This transaction is particularly impressive in view of its having taken place 12 years ago. By the end of 2004, 2,000 overseas enterprises from 40 countries and regions, including the USA, Germany, France, Austria, and Japan had built factories in Minhang. Among them, 40 of the World Top 500 have set up branches in Minhang, and some have moved their headquarters to the district. To date, Minhang is in receipt of 40 billion yuan in private domestic capital and US $6 billion in contractual overseas capital. Overseas investment and private economy are key growth points in Minhang’s economic structure.

A Green Land

Minhang is a garden district of green areas, and blue waters that have won it many laurels. In 1999, it was named China’s first National Model Urban District for Environmental Protection and in 2001 it won the China Human Settlements and Environment Award. In 2002, Minhang was named National Sanitary City, and conferred the title “Dubai International Best Practice to Improve the Living Environment of the United Nations.”

This beautiful environment is based on the guiding principle upon which Wang Hongquan works. He insists that, “Continuous perfection of the investment environment is key to strengthening and maintaining a district’s competitive vitality. Top priority will continue to be given to improving the urban environment.” Within their drive to accelerate modernized construction, the District Party Committee and government work according to the strategy of “attaching equal importance to economic and urban construction, environmental construction and protection.” The plan is to proceed on basis of one or two key points of development each year.

Minhang has seen appreciable improvement in the quality of its air and potable water. From 1993 to 2004, its green areas increased from 800,000 to 36.9 million square meters, which translates into 40 percent green coverage and 11 square meters of public green areas per capita. Its trees and grass verges on all main roads and in each public area make Minhang outstanding among its neighboring districts.

Minhang’s excellent environment has boosted its economic development. Within seven years its GDP increased eight-fold and its financial income six-fold. The district’s pleasant surroundings have also increased its land values and boosted real estate, commerce and business development.

A Vibrant Up-to-the-Minute District

Minhang’s potential is self-evident. Pujiang Town in eastern Minhang is the crux of Shanghai’s urban construction. Currently under construction there are a 10-square-kilometer Italianate town, a 10-square-kilometer national hi-tech garden and an export-processing zone. In southern Minhang, construction of the Zizhu Science Garden, including a six square kilometer digital technology R&D base, and the University Zone is underway. To date, research and development worth US $500 million has been conducted in this science garden. The University Zone will be site of Shanghai Jiaotong University and Huadong Normal University, to name but two. The Shanghai Qizhong Forest Sports City in Minhang’s southwest, in which the 2005 Shanghai Tennis Masters Cup will be held in the sports city’s Tennis Center, is also under construction. Huacao Town in northern Minhang is site of construction of a luxury residential block, earmarked for overseas residents. In central Minhang, a large sports theme park with an advanced gymnasium will soon be finished. Upon construction of the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway station and high-level business district, Minhang’s development into a modern and multi-functional district within a beautiful environment will be complete.