LocatedinPudongNewArea,LujiazuifacestheBundacrosstheHuangpuRiverandhasbecomeoneofthemostimportantfinancialhubsofChina.byXuWanglin
PhotosdepictthetransformationofShanghai’sLujiazuiareafrom1990to2016.ThefirstthreephotoswereshotbyYaoJianliang,andthelastbyXuWanglin.DuringhisvisittoLincolnHighSchoolinTacoma,Washingtonin2015,ChinesePresidentXiJinpingsuggestedlocalstudentsvisitShanghaitowitnessthechangesofChinaoverthepastcentury.
Indeed,thedevelopmentofShanghaioverthepast100yearsmirrorsthetremendouschangesofthenationinmoderntimes,whichhadneverbeforebeenseenacrossChinesehistory.
In1843,Shanghai,thenasmallcoastalcounty,openedtoforeigntradeaccordingtotheTreatyofNanjingandtheGeneralRegulationsforTradeatFiveTreatyPortsaftertheOpiumWar,takingthefirststepsofajourneythatwouldculminateinthecityemergingasthemostprosperousmetropolisintheFarEast.
In1921,theFirstNationalCongressoftheCommunistPartyofChina(CPC)washeldintheFrenchConcessioninShanghai,markingthebirthoftheCPC.Fromthatpointon,Chinesepeopleunderoppressionkindledhopeforliberation,andtheChineserevolutionenteredanewstage.
In1937,theBattleofShanghaibrokeout,andthecitybecameabattlefieldtofightJapaneseinvaders.ThecityhostedoneofthelargestandfiercestbattlesduringtheChinesePeople’sWarofResistanceagainstJapaneseAggression.ThetenaciousresistanceoftheChinesepeopleupendedtheJapanesearmy’splanto“conquerChinawithinthreemonths.”
In1949,ShanghaiwitnessedtheendofoldChina.ElderlyShanghainativesstillremembertroopsofthePeople’sLiberationArmy(PLA)sleepingonthestreetsforthreenightstoavoiddisturbinglocalresidentsastheyliberatedthecitythatyear.
ShanghaicontinuestoshowcaseChina’sdevelopmentoverthepastcentury,andPudongmirrorsShanghai’stremendouschangesoverthepastfourdecadessincethebeginningofChina’sreformandopeningupinthelate1970s.
In1990,theCPCCentralCommitteeandtheStateCouncilofChina,seekingtopromoteoverallreformandopeningupofthecountry,madetheimportantdecisiontoopenShanghai’sPudongarea.Asayinggoesthat“ShenzhenledChina’sreformandopeningupinthe1980s,andPudongtooktherelaybatoninthe1990s.”Inthiscontext,Shanghaishiftedfroma“lineofdefense”ofthenation’sreformandopeninguptoa“striker.”
ANewWindowtotheWorld
ThePuxiareainShanghaiwasalreadyprosperousintheearly20thcentury,butPudongremainedavastexpanseoffarmlandsandreedmarshesdottedwithahandfulofdilapidatedfactoriesandresidencesasrecentlyasthelate20thcentury.AsasayingprevalentinShanghaiduringthe1980sgoes,“AbedinPuxiisbetterthanahouseinPudong.”
Historically,afterShanghaiopenedtoforeigntrade,Westerncolonistscontinuedexpandingtheirsettlementsinthecity,butnoneventuredtodevelopthePudongareaacrosstheHuangpuRiver.PuxienjoyedincreasingdevelopmentwhilePudongwasleftfarbehind.
AfterthefoundingofthePeople’sRepublicofChinain1949,theCPCledtheChinesepeopleinpromotingtheconstructionofNewChina.Before1990,Shanghai,dubbedthe“eldestsonofChina’seconomy,”contributedone-sixthofallnationalrevenues.Afterpayingsuchmassivesumstothenationaltreasury,theremainingrevenuesofthelocalgovernmentofShanghaicouldonlyaffordminimalexpendituresinurbanconstruction.Consequently,Shanghailackedfundsforinfrastructure,whichresultedinproblemssuchasinsufficienthousing,trafficcongestionandenvironmentalpollution.Thecityonceknownas“ParisoftheEast”sufferedadecline.
In1978,Chinaimplementedthereformandopening-uppolicy.Startingin1980,theChinesegovernmentdecidedtoestablishfivespecialeconomiczones(SEZs)onthesoutheastcoastofthecountry,suchasShenzhenSEZ,whichledtoremarkableachievements.Asneighboringcountriesandregionsconsecutivelyembarkedonmissionsofrapiddevelopment,ShanghailostitspastgloryasamajormetropolisintheFarEast,anditsroleshiftedfromastartoabenchwarmerinChina’seconomicdevelopmentgame.
Bytheendofthe1980s,theglobalpoliticallandscapehadchangeddrastically.ThecollapseoftheSovietUnionandthedrasticchangesinEasternEuropedealtablowtothedevelopmentofsocialismaroundtheworld,posingnewchallengesforChina’sreformanddevelopment.TheWestbegantoturnaskepticaleyetoChina’seconomicreform.
Sensingchangesintheinternationalsituation,DengXiaoping,thechiefarchitectofChina’sreformandopeningup,urgedthecountrytoopenitsdoorwidertotheworldtoboostdomesticreformandopeningup.
Earlyin1990,DengvisitedShanghai.Anenthusiasticbridgeplayer,hedubbedShanghaiChina’s“trumpcard”andbelievedthatthecity’sdevelopmentcouldprovidea“shortcut”forthewholecountry’sdevelopment.“WemustinvestallourstrengthintheplantodevelopPudonguntilitsucceeds,”Dengstressed.
DengsoughttomakePudongabannerofChina’sfurtherreformandopeningup,whichwoulddemonstratethenation’sdeterminationandconfidencetoconsistentlypromoteitsreformandopeningup.
BasedonDeng’sinitiative,theChinesegovernmenttookpromptactiontoformulateastrategicplanforthedevelopmentandopeningupofPudong.OnApril18,1990,theCPCCentralCommitteeandtheStateCouncilofChinaannouncedaplantodevelopandopenPudong.ThisannouncementelevatedthedevelopmentandopeningupofPudongtoanationalkeystrategy.ThemunicipalgovernmentofShanghaithenreleasedaguidelineto“developPudong,rejuvenateShanghai,servethenation,andopenarmstotheworld.”
ThisheraldedthebeginningofPudong’sdevelopmentandopeningup.Shanghaiseizedthehistoricopportunityinthelastdecadeofthe20thcenturytoagainridethetideofChina’seconomicreform.
From1990to2000,whenitofficiallybecameanadministrativedistrictofShanghai,PudongNewAreawitnessedtremendouschangesandcreatedmany“firsts”ofthenation:thefirstfinanceandtradezone,thefirstexportprocessingzone,thefirstbondedzone,thefirstforeign-fundedbankandthefirstforeign-fundedinsurancecompany.Notonlydiditseconomicstrengthexpandrapidly,butalsoitpavedthepathforChina’sentryintotheWorldTradeOrganization.
ThedevelopmentofPudonginjectedimpetusintothewholenation’sreformandopeningup,openinganewwindowtoChinafortheworld.
Intheearly1990s,theareanearGate5oftheWaigaoqiaoFreeTradeZoneinShanghaiwasavastexpanseoffarmland.courtesyofPudongNewAreaInformationOfficePoolingGlobalWisdomthroughDialogue
HowshouldPudongdevelop?Atthetime,therewasn’tanylogicalprecedent.ButtheChinesepeoplesolvedtheproblemwithtranscendentvision.Shanghaiformulatedtheguidingprincipleof“seekingdevelopmentorientedtothePacificandthefuture,”andtheplanningofallrelevantinfrastructureprojectsfollowedtheprinciple.
WhiledevelopingthePudongarea,Shanghaihasmaintainedamodestattitudeandcontinuedlearningfromtheworld.Lujiazuiwasoneoftheearliestexamplesofthecity’seffortstopoolglobalwisdom.
Nowaninternationalfinancialhubfeaturingcountlessskyscrapers,Lujiazuiishometoanimpressiveconcentrationoffinancialinstitutionsfromaroundtheworld.ItsbustlingstreetsarenotunlikeWallStreet.AsthecentralbusinessdistrictofShanghai,LujiazuirivalstheSquareMileofLondonandManhattaninNewYorkCity.ItisalsothefirstfinanceandtradezoneinChina.
FewcannowimaginethattheareawasformerlyasmallroadnamedLannidu(literally,“MuddyFerry”).World-renownedarchitectsfromChina,Britain,France,JapanandItalywereinvitedtodesigntheLujiazuifinanceandtradezone.ThedesignbyJapanesearchitects,whichresemblesaprintedcircuitboardassembly,boastedastrongmodernistsense.ThedesignbyarchitectsfromItaly,thecradleoftheRenaissance,resembledanancientoval-shapedcastle.ThedesignbyromanticFrencharchitectsfeaturedanabstract,simpleartistictouch,formingasharpcontrastwithclassicalbuildingsontheBund,awaterfrontareaincentralShanghai.ThedesignbyscrupulousBritisharchitectscombinedtraditionandmodernity.ThedesignbyChinesearchitectsemphasizedthefunctionanddevelopmentpotentialoftheaxisofthearea.
After17roundsofdiscussionsandmodificationswithintwoyears,thefinalblueprintfortheconstructionofLujiazuiwascompleted.ItwasthefirsttimethatChinacarriedoutspecificinternationalconsultationsandpooledglobalwisdomfortheplanningofadevelopmentzone.
InadditiontoLujiazui,manylandmarkbuildingsinPudongarefruitsofglobalwisdom.Manyarchitectsfromaroundtheworldwereinvitedtodesignstructuresthere.Forinstance,theShanghaiPudongInternationalAirportthatresemblesahugebirdwithoutstretchedwingsandtheShanghaiOrientalArtCenterthatappearslikeabloomingmagnoliaflowerwerebothdesignedbyrenownedFrencharchitectPaulAndreu.TheShanghaiNewInternationalExpoCenterwasdesignedbyaGermanarchitect.Andthe1.4-square-kilometerCenturyParkthatfusesChineseandWesterncultureswasdesignedbyaBritisharchitect.
Pudonghasnotonlyintroducedfundsandtechnologiesfromaroundtheworld,butalsopooledglobalwisdom.ItsactivedialogueandtransculturalexchangewiththeworldaretheinternaldriversofPudong’sspeedydevelopment.
Aslogantranslatedas“ThinkoverthedevelopmentofPudongwhilestandingbesideaterrestrialglobe”washunginthedininghallofthe“commandingheadquarters”forthedevelopmentandopeningupofPudonglocatedat141PudongAvenue.ThesloganwasattributedtoZhaoQizheng,thenvicemayorofShanghaianddirectoroftheAdministrativeCommitteeofPudongNewArea.HeexplainedthatthissloganaimedtoencourageallofficialsinPudongtohaveglobalvisionandaninternationalizedwayofthinkingandformulateandimplementglobalizedstrategies.
“Pudongisembracingtheworldwithitsdevelopment,”remarkedZhao.“Intermsoffunction,itaimstobecomeaninternationalizedeconomichub,soitneedsmarketentitiesaswellasinvestment,experiencesandachievementsfromaroundtheworld.Thus,weshouldobservePudongfromaglobalperspective,ratherthantheperspectiveofShanghai.”
FacingthePacificOceantotheeast,Pudongopensarmstothewholeworldandthinksoveritsdevelopmentwhilestandingbesideaterrestrialglobe,sothatitsdevelopmentandopeninguphasgraduallyenabledShanghaitoberankedamongmoderninternationalmetropolisestogetherwithNewYorkCity,London,Frankfurt,andTokyo.
Pudonghasopenedanewwindowtotheworld.
ToweringskyscrapersintheLujiazuiFinanceandTradeZonetestifytotheremarkableachievementsofPudong’sdevelopmentandopeningupoverthepast28years.byXuWanglinTestFieldforSystemInnovation
DuringhisinspectiontourtoPudong,ChinesePresidentXiJinpingsurmisedthatthesignificanceofPudong’sdevelopmentandopeningupisitsdemonstrativeroleasawindowofChinatotheworld,itsenterprisingandpioneeringspiritanditsfunctionasavanguardandtestfield.
ThecouragetoconductunprecedentedexperimentsisthecallingcardofPudong.Throughoutthehistoryofitsdevelopmentandopeningup,PudongisresponsibleforanumberofChinese“firsts.”
In1990,itestablishedthecountry’sfirstfinanceandtradezone(LujiazuiFinanceandTradeZone),thecountry’sfirstexportprocessingzone(JinqiaoExportProcessingZone),thecountry’sfirstbondedzone(WaigaoqiaoBondedLogisticsPark)andthecountry’sfirststockexchange(ShanghaiStockExchange).
In1995,China’sfirstretailjointventureapprovedbytheStateCouncil,ShanghaiNo.1YohanShoppingMallCo.,Ltd.,settledinPudong.
In2005,PudongbecamethefirsttocarryoutpilotcomprehensivereforminChina.
In2013,China(Shanghai)PilotFreeTradeZone,thefirstofitskindinthecountry,wasestablishedinPudong.
In2015,Pudongbecamethefirsttocarryoutthepilotreformof“separationofbusinesslicensesandgovernmentpermits”inChina.
In2018,ChinaOilFutures,thecountry’sfirstinternationalizedfuturesproduct,begantradingonShanghaiInternationalEnergyExchange,asubsidiaryofShanghaiFuturesExchange,inPudong.
OnSeptember29,2013,China(Shanghai)PilotFreeTradeZonewasofficiallyinaugurated.Covering28squarekilometersinPudong,about1/266ofShanghai’stotalarea,thisfreetradezoneisexpectedtoboostanotherroundofChinesereform.
Alongsidethepilotcomprehensivereform,theChinesegovernmentestablisheditsfirstpilotfreetradezoneinPudongbecauseofitsadvantageoussystemfoundation,openingupandstrategicposition.ThegovernmenthopesPudongcanserveasatestfieldforupgradedreformofChina’seconomy.
LiQiang,secretaryoftheCPCShanghaiMunicipalCommittee,wroteinanarticlethatbasedontherequirementslaidoutbytheCPCCentralCommittee,thecityisfocusedonsysteminnovationandtakingboldandactivemeasurestoexploretheestablishmentofaninstitutionalsystemtomeetthehighest-levelinternationalstandardsandalignwithinternationalinvestmentandtraderulesandcoordinatepromotionofinnovationininvestmentmanagement,tradefacilitation,financialopening,andgovernmentregulationsystemstoexplorenewpathsandaccumulatenewexperiencestocomprehensivelydeepenChina’sreformandopeningupandcreateanewsystemofanopeneconomy.
ThemostnoticeableachievementsChina(Shanghai)PilotFreeTradeZonehasmadeoverthepastfiveyearssinceitsestablishmentincludemorethan100systeminnovationsthatcanbereplicatedanddisseminated,suchasthe“negativelist”managementmode.Inaddition,bydeepeningthereformofseparationofbusinesslicensesandgovernmentpermits,thepositionofenterprisesasmarketandinvestmententitieshasbeenfurtherconsolidated.Thefreetradezonehasestablishedatraderegulationsystemthatconformstohigh-standardtradefacilitationrules,enablingallproceduresconcerningcargoandshippingdeclarationtobehandledatthesamecounter.Ithasalsoopenedmorefreetradeaccounts,carriedoutsysteminnovationinfieldslikepreventingriskinanopenenvironment,exploringspecificpathsforclarifyingtherelationshipbetweenthegovernmentandthemarketandoptimizingthebusinessenvironment.
AccordingtotheplantocomprehensivelydeepenreformandopeningupofChina(Shanghai)PilotFreeTradeZoneissuedbytheStateCouncilinMarch2017,freetradeportareaswillbesetupinspecialcustomssupervisionareassuchasYangshanBondedPortAreaandPudongAirportComprehensiveBondedArea.ThisplanhasbeenhailedasVersion3.0ofthereformofChina(Shanghai)PilotFreeTradeZone.
Later,thereporttothe19thCPCNationalCongresscalledfor“grantingmorepowerstopilotfreetradezonestoconductreformandexploringtheopeningoffreetradeports.”
Throughdeeperreforms,Pudongisgettingawholenewlook.
Pudonghasattractednumeroustalentedprofessionalstotakepartinitsrapiddevelopment.byQiaoZhenqiLegendintheNewEra
IntheeyesofWengZuliang,PartysecretaryofPudongNewAreaandmemberoftheStandingCommitteeoftheCPCShanghaiMunicipalCommittee,thekeytobuildingfreetradeportsistomeetthehighestglobalstandardsforopeningupandpresentChinesesolutionsfortheworld.
Thisrequiresachangeinthegovernment’sfunction.Thegovernmentshouldplaya“guiding”and“serving”role.OnJanuary1,2016,China(Shanghai)PilotFreeTradeZoneledthenationbykickingoffapilotprogramonthereformofseparationofbusinesslicensesandgovernmentpermits.Throughtheimplementationofthepilotprogram,116formeradministrativelicensingitemshavebeencanceledorreplacedandanotificationandcommitmentsystemhasbeenimplemented.Measureshavealsobeentakentoincreasethetransparencyandpredictabilityofadministrativelicensingandstrengthenmarketaccesssupervision.
Thisyear,theStateCouncilapprovedthenationwideimplementationofthereformofseparationofbusinesslicensesandgovernmentpermitsandassignedShanghaiandPudong47newtasksacross10realms.Pudonghaspromisedtoaccomplishthemissionswithhasteandmaintainthe“speedofthefreetradezone.”
InFebruary2016,theNationalDevelopmentandReformCommissionandtheMinistryofScienceandTechnologyapprovedShanghai’splantobuildacomprehensivenationalsciencecenteratZhangjianginPudong,akeymeasureandcoretaskforthecitytobecomeascientificandtechnologicalinnovationcenterofglobalinfluence.InSeptember2013,theChina(Shanghai)PilotFreeTradeZoneofficiallyopened.Byestablishingthecountry’sfirstspecialcustomssupervisionareameetinginternationalstandards,ShanghaiannouncedtotheworldthatChina’sdoorofopeningupwillnevercloseandcontinueopeningwider.courtesyofPudongNewAreaInformationOfficeZhangjiangnowfostersscientificandtechnologicalinnovationsdaily,manyofwhichhavestunnednotonlyShanghaiandChinabuttheworldatlarge.Currently,ZhangjiangishometofourBigSciencefacilitiesincludingPhaseIofShanghaiSynchrotronRadiationFacility,NationalCenterforProteinScience,ShanghaiX-RayFree-ElectronLaserTestFacilityandPhaseIofShanghaiSupercomputerCenter.Thesefacilitiesareindispensabletestingplatformsforavarietyoffrontierscienceresearch.
Technologicalinnovationhasinjectedthevitalitytoshiftthelocaleconomyfromhigh-speedgrowthtohigh-qualitydevelopment.In2017,theaddedvalueofPudongNewArea’ssecondaryandtertiaryindustriesaccountedfor25.1percentand74.7percentofitsGDP,respectively.Thegrowthrateofthesecondarysectorwashigherthanthatofthetertiarysector,withstrategicemergingindustriescontributing40.9percentofthetotaloutputofindustrialenterprisesabovedesignatedsize.Bytheendof2017,thenumberofhigh-techenterprisesinPudonghadreached1,711,thenumberofpatentsownedbyper10,000populationhit55,andauthenticatedincubatorsandmakerspacesamountedto134.Adropofwatermirrorsthebrillianceofthesun,andsimilarly,thedevelopmentofaplacemayreflectthedevelopmentofanation.AsawitnessofChina’s40yearsofreformandopeningup,themiraculousdevelopmentofPudongNewAreaoverthepast28yearsfullydemonstratesthatestablishingSEZsandnewareasistherightsolutionforeconomicdevelopment,thatpromotingthereformandopeningupundertheleadershipoftheCPCistherightchoiceforthecountry,andthatsocialismwithChinesecharacteristicsistheoptimalroad.
China’sreformandopeningupcreatedthePudongmiracle,whichwillonlycontinueintothefuture.