A decade of rapid development in the Xiang'an District of Xiamen, Fujian province, has transformed it into an economic powerhouse.

The district's GDP totaled 18.23 billion yuan ($2.98 billion) from January to July, up 16.4 percent year on year, and its fixed-asset investment stood at 11.41 billion yuan, an increase of 18 percent over last year.

Xiang'an is also showing great progress in other major economic indicators, such as general financial revenue, the average income of farmers per capita, and investment promotion.

"It takes advantage of major projects to adjust and optimize industrial structure and attract business and investment," said local officials.

In the first seven months of this year, the district approved a total of 13 foreign investment projects involving $75.16 million.

There are almost 600 domestic projects bound for Xiang'an with registered capital totaling 655.25 million yuan. These are being undertaken by State-owned companies, famous private businesses as well as multinational corporations.

In addition, the district has made it part of the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15) to expand its optoelectronics industry.

It will strive to form an optoelectronic cluster and build an industrial chain worth 100 billion yuan.

One example is the Taiwan-based AU Optronics, one of the world's top TFT-LCD manufactures, which established its production facility in Xiang'an in 2007.

Another enterprise is AOC International, a major multinational displayer producer that settled in the district in August 2009.

"The arrival of the two conglomerates has helped draw in other major optoelectronic projects afterward," said officials.

In addition to optoelectronics enterprises, companies in other sectors are also looking to Xiang'an for its business-friendly environment.

At the moment, the district has attracted many major companies in the fields of logistics, premium building materials and optoelectronics, and a number of key projects are under negotiations.

More than 700 companies have decided to develop their businesses in the district's industrial parks, including more than 500 that have already started production.

To the west of Xing'an road, an area of 1.1 square kilometers was set aside to be a lightning rod for investment.

By April, six companies had signed contracts to begin operations there, and another two confirmed their intent to settle there as well.

By the end of August, Xiang'an had appropriated 23 blocks of land in its CBD area for local economic development, with another eight blocks to be available soon, local officials said.

Xiang'an has paid special attention to its infrastructure construction to make itself an ideal place for business opportunities.

Over the past decade, the network of its main roads has taken shape, offering convenient transportation between Xiang'an and Xiamen Island.

Metro lines No 2 and No 3 both run across Xiang'an, greatly cutting the commute in and out of Xiamen Island.

The 5.7-km-long Haicang-Xiang'an Avenue connects the four districts of Xiamen and then further links them to Zhangzhou and Quanzhou, the other two most economically vital cities in Fujian province.

More importantly, construction will start on the Xiang'an International Airport before 2015, and it will begin operation before 2020.

Covering an area of 17.5 square kilometers, the airport will have an annual passenger throughput of 30 million person-times in the beginning and 60 million in the long run.

It will become an important hub connecting China's Southeast coastal areas.

Moreover, the district has kept up with the development of water, electricity and pollution control to back up its overall development.

In a recent strategic planning outline by Xiamen's municipal Party committee, Xiang'an was placed front and center again.

The district will give priority to industrial development, new town construction and improving local living standards, officials said.

[email protected]

(China Daily 09/08/2013 page19)