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Read in Chinese

Speakers: 

Mr. Zhang Gong, deputy secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Tianjin Municipal Committee and mayor of Tianjin 

Mr. Liu Guiping, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Tianjin Municipal Committee and executive vice mayor of Tianjin

Ms. Shen Lei, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Tianjin Municipal Committee and director of the Publicity Department of the CPC Tianjin Municipal Committee

Mr. Dai Yongkang, director of the Tianjin Development and Reform Commission

Chairperson:

Mr. Chen Wenjun, director general of the Press Bureau of the State Council Information Office (SCIO) and spokesperson of the SCIO

Date:

April 3, 2024

Chen Wenjun:

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to this press conference held by the State Council Information Office (SCIO). Today, we are holding the sixth briefing in the series "Promoting High-Quality Development." We have invited Mr. Zhang Gong, deputy secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Tianjin Municipal Committee and mayor of Tianjin, to brief you on striving for excellence in four key areas and contributing Tianjin's efforts to advance Chinese modernization, and to take your questions. Also present today are Mr. Liu Guiping, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Tianjin Municipal Committee and executive vice mayor of Tianjin; Ms. Shen Lei, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Tianjin Municipal Committee and director of the Publicity Department of the CPC Tianjin Municipal Committee; and Mr. Dai Yongkang, director of the Tianjin Development and Reform Commission.

Now, I'll give the floor to Mr. Zhang for his introduction. 

Zhang Gong:

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. It's a great pleasure to have this opportunity to brief you on Tianjin's development. First of all, I'd like to express my heartfelt gratitude to you for your long-term support for and interest in Tianjin's work.

Ahead of last Spring Festival, General Secretary Xi Jinping visited Tianjin and guided relevant work, delivering an important speech where he put forward the crucial requirement of striving for excellence in four key areas (namely fostering new quality productive forces, further deepening reform and opening up across the board, promoting cultural inheritance, and making urban governance more modernized). This has pointed out the direction and injected strong momentum for Tianjin to pursue high-quality development on the new journey.

Over the past year, focusing on the central task of economic growth and the top priority of high-quality development, we have further implemented 10 initiatives, such as striving for solid progress in the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, supporting and guiding the high-quality development of the Binhai New Area, promoting port-industry-city integrated development, and invigorating the city through science, education and workforce. These efforts have yielded positive results in several aspects:

First, stability and effectiveness have been further improved. Last year, Tianjin's GDP increased by 4.3%, with general public budget revenue rising by 9.8% and tax revenue by 17.2%. In the first quarter of this year, the general public budget revenue grew by 7.3%. Second, momentum for progress has been further accumulated. Accelerated advancement was observed in several key projects such as the second final assembly line of the Airbus A320 series aircrafts , the 12-inch production line of the Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), the 1.2 million-ton ethylene program of INEOS and Sinopec , and Novo Nordisk's capacity expansion. Last year, the number of market entities in Tianjin increased by 7.9%, and Tianjin Port's container throughput reached 22.18 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). In the first quarter of this year, container throughput increased by 7.2%. R&D spending across Tianjin has reached 3.49% of GDP, and the Tiankai Higher Education Innovation Park is thriving, fostering an increasingly vibrant atmosphere for innovation and entrepreneurship. Third, positive expectations have become more evident. A number of centrally administered state-owned enterprises (SOEs), financial institutions, leading private businesses, and multinational corporations have actively engaged in cooperation discussions in Tianjin. An array of important exhibitions and competitions have been held in the city, such as the 14th Summer Davos Forum, the World Intelligence Congress, the 2023 Tianjin International Shipping Industry Expo , the China Tourism Industry Exposition , and the 2023 China International College Students' Innovation Competition. In Tianjin, visitors can admire the beautiful scenery along the Haihe River, watch the sunrise at Dongjiang Port, enjoy the sea of blossoms at Wudadao historical urban area (also known as the Five Great Avenues), indulge in shopping at the Florentia Village outlet mall, and savor delicious local cuisines at the Northwest Corner. "Tianjin Flavor" tourism has further magnified the city's vitality and charm. The per capita disposable income of Tianjin residents exceeded 50,000 yuan (around $6,912) last year, with public services becoming more balanced and accessible.  

Moving forward, we will bear in mind the expectations of General Secretary Xi Jinping, anchor ourselves to the goal of building a modern socialist metropolis in all respects, and strive to pursue Chinese modernization and high-quality development, thereby consistently showcasing Tianjin's new accomplishments. The main aspects of our work are:

First, we will focus on urban integration and continue striving to make solid progress in the integrated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. We will deepen institutional innovation for coordinated development, and constantly improve joint contribution and sharing of public and market-oriented services. We will proactively serve the relieving of Beijing of functions non-essential to its role as China's capital, and place greater emphasis on allocating and attracting market-oriented resources. In addition, we will leverage the role of the Binhai New Area as a strategic cooperation function zone, achieving its coordinated development with Xiong'an New Area and Beijing municipal administrative center while highlighting their own distinct strengths . By increasing synergy in scientific and technological (sci-tech) innovation and integration of industrial systems, we aim to apply more sci-tech advances and make industrial support more efficient within the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. We will continuously enhance the region's service efficiency in railways and waterways, so as to make personnel exchanges more convenient as well as internal and external logistics circulation more efficient.

Second, we will concentrate on sci-tech innovation and industrial rejuvenation, and strive for excellence in fostering new quality productive forces. We will work to nurture the function of cities in promoting sci-tech innovation and applying the advancements, and build a regional center for application of sci-tech advances based on relevant resources and manufacturing supporting. We will deepen collaboration between Tiankai Higher Education Innovation Park and various innovative resources in the capital, strengthen the cultivation of a market-oriented sci-tech service system and policy support, thus moving more sci-tech advances from labs to production lines in and out the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Moreover, we will actively attract national strategic sci-tech forces to establish a presence in Tianjin, facilitate the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries according to local conditions, and capitalize on strengths and avoid weaknesses to foster and expand emerging industries, thus constructing a modern industrial system in an orderly manner. 

Third, we will center on optimizing the business environment and institutional opening-up, and strive for excellence in further deepening reform and opening-up across the board. We will unswervingly consolidate and develop the public sector, and to encourage, support, and guide development of the non-public sector, promote the reform and development of SOEs on a categorized basis, and build up the private sector. With the aim of better serving market entities, we will introduce a series of scenarios to efficiently handle matters. To energize the vitality of sci-tech innovation personnel and enterprises, we will upgrade the policies for Tiankai Higher Education Innovation Park. Leveraging the advantages of ports, comprehensive bonded zones, pilot free trade zones and the comprehensive pilot program for service sector opening, we will intensify exploratory efforts in the pilot program for institutional opening-up in such fields as sci-tech finance, "bonded plus," financial leasing, shipping services, exhibition services and cross-border data flows. 

Fourth, we will spotlight protection and utilization, and yield remarkable results in promoting cultural preservation and development. We will steadfastly follow the principles of cultivating culture, enriching people's lives through culture, enhancing the city's cultural vibrancy, and driving industrial development with cultural initiatives. We will improve the public cultural service system to better meet citizens' needs, promote the integration of culture and tourism, and accelerate the construction of distinctive tourist destinations, further enhancing the vitality and charm of the city.

Fifth, we will focus on ensuring residents' well-being and promoting urban governance modernization. We will prioritize ensuring residents enjoy peace and contentment in work and life. Based on the characteristics of Tianjin being a super-large city, we will expedite the development of refined management, smart governance, and participatory governance, and pursue a content-rich development path. We are committed to steadily promoting urban renewal, constantly increasing the efficiency of urban operational services, and enhancing the city's overall safety.

The development of Tianjin relies on the concern and support of friends from various sectors. We sincerely invite you to visit Tianjin, experience the optimism and openness of Tianjin's people, and feel the vigorous vitality of Tianjin's development.

That's all for my introduction. My colleagues and I would like to answer your questions. Thank you!