The Guian New Area Comprehensive Bonded Zone in Guizhou province will strongly support regional economic development, local officials said.
The bonded zone will be an important platform to strengthen communication between Guian New Area and the outside world. It is a solid foundation for building a demonstration area for Guizhous opening-up, said Ma Changqing, Party chief and head of the administrative committee of Guian New Area.
The bonded zone, covering 2.2 square kilometers, went into operation on March 30.
Ma said the zone will grow into a demonstration area for industrial upgrades and a role model for promoting opening-up in Chinas inland areas.
The State Council approved the establishment of the Guian Bonded Zone on Jan 12 last year.
The first phase of the zone, including six roads, warehouse facilities and an information-sharing system, was completed in eight months. Office and urban facilities were also built during the first phase, allowing companies to begin operations immediately after moving into the zone.
The bonded zone passed appraisal tests conducted by a group of experts on Dec 23.
I was impressed by the construction speed of the bonded zone. It maintained high standards in construction and investment projects selection, said Li Zhihui, one of the appraisal experts and also deputy director at the processing trade and bonded system department of the General Administration of Customs.
The Guian New Area government vows to pay more attention to innovation and ecology to strengthen the zones competitiveness.
Local officials said they will highlight the coordination between growth and ecology and they will stick to five principles for development: innovation, coordination, green growth, openness and resource sharing.
The local government said it will prioritize an innovation-driven strategy to support the bonded zones development. The zone will cut unnecessary administrative procedures, promote free trade and provide market-oriented financial services in the coming years.
Guian will have better economic structure with support from the bonded zone, said Wang Bing, deputy chief of the zones administrative committee.
The zone will explore new growth models to better serve core industries such as advanced equipment, biotechnology and modern services.
According to local statistics, 15 investment projects have established offices in the bonded zone with investment of 2 billion yuan ($307 million). Agreements for another 12 projects have been finalized between the zone and investors.
(China Daily 05/16/2016 page10)
