Shanghai lists 'remarkable achievements' ahead of Party congress

Shanghai has made remarkable achievements in implementing the country's key development strategies, said officials ahead of the opening of the city's Party congress, which will summarize the CPC Shanghai Committee's work in the past five years and set goals for the next five.

Shanghai has implemented 78 new policies in the Lingang New Area of the free trade zone to further promote China's opening-up, said Zhuge Yujie, deputy Party secretary.

In the past three years, the new area saw its industrial output reach 264.2 billion yuan (US$39.4 billion) and investment in fixed assets reach 101.1 billion yuan, with 72.7 percent and 62 percent year-on-year growth respectively.

Also, with the establishment of the tech-focused STAR stock market, Shanghai has promoted links between financial capital and innovation factors, as well as the city's functions as a financial center and a center for science and technology innovation, Zhuge said.

By the end of last year, 377 enterprises had been listed on STAR and raised more than 500 billion yuan.

Shanghai also has been playing a leading role in promoting integrated development in the Yangtze River Delta region. Together with Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui provinces, it has launched two rounds of three-year actions to promote cooperation in science and technology innovation, industry and supply chain coordination, public infrastructure connectivity, ecological environment protection and public service sharing.

They have set up the Yangtze River Delta Ecology and Greenery Integration Demonstration Zone to explore new models for integrated development in the region.

Since 2018, Shanghai has successfully held four China International Import Expos, with the intended transaction volume rising from US$57.83 billion to US$90.72 billion.

Also, the Pudong New Area in Shanghai has undertaken a mission to develop as a leading zone for the promotion of socialist modernization.

Zhuge said Shanghai has been building itself into a more people-oriented city since Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, initiated the concept of "a city built by the people and for the people" on the waterfront in Yangpu District in 2019.

It has launched 16 programs to promote people's wellbeing, including setting up more convenient breakfast booths, installing elevators in old buildings and building more childcare facilities. In the past five years, the city has renovated more than 3 million square meters of run-down buildings, benefiting 154,000 households.

Zhuge said Shanghai has been trying its best to give people the best resources, such as opening up more public spaces along Huangpu River and Suzhou Creek in the past five years.

It has built more cultural facilities, such as World Expo Culture Park, the east branches of Shanghai Museum and Shanghai Library, Shanghai Opera House and Shanghai Planetarium.

It has also launched a project to increase the number of parks to over 1,000 by 2025 to enhance citizens' sense of happiness.