Expert praises Shanghai's urban development achievements
Experts share their latest research with media reporters, from both home and abroad, at a salon hosted by the Information Office of the Shanghai government in Yangpu District on Wednesday.
Shanghai's urban development practices will provide a solution for other global metropolises to achieve sustainable development, a senior researcher with a local think-tank said on Wednesday.
The "people-oriented" principle has played a key role during the urban management of the megacity, with notable achievements, according to Deng Zhituan, a researcher with the Institute of Urban and Demography Studies with the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences.
"The primary target of the city government is to allow every citizen to take part in urban management, showcase their talent, enjoy quality life, feel the warmth and get a sense of belonging," Deng told journalists at a media salon.
Twenty-five reporters from home and overseas attended the salon hosted by the Information Office of the Shanghai government on the Huangpu River waterfront in Yangpu District, which features dozens of well-preserved early industrial heritage structures of the city.
During a visit to the waterfront in November 2019, President Xi Jinping said: "Cities are built by the people and for the people."
He insisted that urban planning and development must be committed to a people-centered approach and focus on people's needs.
Deng noted that an increasing number of residents have been invited to participate in urban renewal and policy making in Shanghai in recent years.
For instance, a total of 576 kilometers of overhead cables in downtown areas have been moved underground to improve the city's image.
The official e-governance platform, Government Online-Offline Shanghai, has served about 74 million users and processed 263 million applications.
People stroll along the Huangpu River waterfront in Yangpu District.
The riverside areas along the Huangpu River and Suzhou Creek have opened to the public with a string of characteristic service stations. And, elevators are being installed in old residential buildings, Deng pointed out.
Shanghai has also been selected as the most attractive Chinese city for overseas professionals for 11 straight years.
About a third of overseas professionals with permanent residence permits in China work in Shanghai.
The city also gathers the most domestic talents in the integrated circuit, biomedicine and artificial intelligence sectors, according to Deng.
In addition, Shanghai has created 10-minute and 15-minute public culture life circles in downtown and rural areas, respectively, taking the lead among domestic cities. Over 40,000 art performances were staged in the city in 2021, the same level with that of 2019 before the COVID-19 outbreak.
Show Life, for instance, a theater and art performance zone in Huangpu District, is a collection of the most popular downtown performing arts venues, such as the Shanghai Grand Theater, Great Theatre of China, Shanghai People's Theater and Shanghai Culture Square.
On the sidelines of the salon, reporters were invited to walk along the Yangpu waterfront, which is also a demonstration of the "people-centered" urban development concept, according to the district government.
The Yangpu waterfront is known as the birthplace of China's modern industries with the nation's first water, electricity, shipbuilding and textile companies located here.
Many of the industrial buildings, such as the iconic Yangshupu Power Plant and Yangshupu Water Plant, have been preserved during the redevelopment of the riverside area.
Pink hairawn muhly thrives on the waterfront region in Yangpu.
