Openness to the outside world in western China

Author: Tu Yuchun, Liu Hui, et al. / Country: Mainland China
Publisher:
Publishing Time: 2001-01-01
Features: In recent years, investment in basic construction has accelerated across the country. Both the eastern and western regions have seen rapid development in railway and highway construction, especially in expressway construction. The mileage of railways, highways, and inland waterways has increased significantly compared to the past. However, due to advantages in capital, talent, policy, and geographical location in previous years, by the end of 1998, the eastern region accounted for nearly 50% of the country's inland waterway mileage, 55% of the expressway mileage, and 45% of the freight transportation volume was concentrated in the east. The transportation in the east is exceptionally advantageous. The railway operation mileage in the western region is 20,882 kilometers, accounting for 36.26% of the country, but the western region is vast, covering half of the country's land area, with a low density of railway networks. In 1998, the national railway network density was 68 kilometers per 10,000 square kilometers of land area, with the eastern region at 153 kilometers, the central region at 107 kilometers, and the western region at only 26 kilometers, equivalent to 38.2% of the national average and 17% of the eastern region. The mileage of highways in the western region is 489,629 kilometers, accounting for 38.30% of the country. The western region is far from the sea, and many cities are still not accessible by water, with poor conditions for overseas shipping. The shortest rail distance from the central cities to the nearest major ports (the shortest rail distance from the central cities to the nearest major ports) is 2,236 kilometers, 7.4 times farther than the 265 kilometers in the east. The mileage of inland waterways in the western region also only accounts for 16.46% of the country. The highway quality in the western region is relatively poor. By the end of 1998, the total mileage of expressways in the country was 8,733 kilometers, with only 1,610 kilometers in the western region, accounting for only 18.44% of the country. The backwardness of transportation infrastructure has constrained local economic development. In 1998, the total freight volume for the entire year was 1,264,361 million tons, with only 293,304 million tons in the western region, accounting for only 23.20% of the country. The poor quality, low standards, and limited quantity of transportation lines have brought inconvenience to industrial production and people's lives (see Table 2-11).
Telecommunications industry is the "pioneer" of economic development, currently the fastest-growing high-tech industry in China, and also the most active and promising industry in the country's economic structure. It directly affects the economic development speed of the region where it is located. The telecommunications construction in the western region is inferior to that in the eastern and central regions, which will inevitably impact the development of the western region in the 21st century. We can compare the gaps in the construction of coastal and western telecommunications infrastructure from the following data. In terms of the number of telephones per 10,000 people, optical cables, digital circuits, and long-distance automatic switching machines, China's telecommunications industry has achieved rapid development after the reform and opening-up. By the end of 1998, the total number of telephones in the country was 190 times that of 1978, and the capacity of long-distance automatic switching machines was 2410 times that of the past. However, there is an imbalance between the eastern and western regions, with a significant gap. The eastern region has 22.36 optical cable circuits per 10,000 people, while the western region has only 9.11, which is 40% of the eastern region. The number of digital circuits per 10,000 people in the eastern region is 2.40 times that of the western region. The capacity of long-distance automatic switching machines per 10,000 people, with terminal access, is 51.31 in the eastern region and 27.37 in the western region, with the western region only accounting for 53.34% of the eastern region. The number of telephones per 10,000 people in the eastern region is 1,716, while in the western region it is 562, with the eastern region being 3.05 times that of the western region (see the following Table 2-12). This undoubtedly puts the western region at a disadvantage in competing with the eastern region.
(IV) Differences in Government Service Levels Between the Eastern and Western Regions
Local governments represent the economic interests of each region. They achieve macro and micro control over local economic development by formulating and implementing different economic policies. It has been proven that the management capabilities of local governments in promoting local economic development directly affect the effective allocation of local resources. If local governments can accurately grasp the trends of international and domestic development, formulate correct long-term and short-term economic plans, create a favorable policy environment for economic development, build national infrastructure, coordinate economic relations between regions, and secure strong support from the central government to provide basic guarantees for enhancing comprehensive national strength, this will promote the rapid development of the local economy. Conversely, it will hinder the development of the local economy.
During the process of socialist economic system reform, the role of local governments in local economic development has changed significantly compared to the pre-reform era. The decentralization of power from the central government to local governments and enterprises has led to the replacement of the original highly centralized management system with diversified management. Local governments now have greater control over the local economy, so they play an increasingly important role in local economic development. However, this role is not to directly interfere in the development of enterprises, but to reduce direct intervention in the economy, gradually reduce economic behaviors in competitive fields, and create space for market development. But the differences in ideological concepts between the eastern and western regions are reflected in the transformation of local government functions and service levels in these regions, thereby playing different roles in local economic development.
At the end of 1978, the Third Plenary Session of the Party made the historic decision to implement reform and opening-up. However, how to reform under the socialist system was unprecedented. Comrade Deng Xiaoping resolutely made the strategic decision to open up the southeastern coastal areas first. The choice of Guangdong and Fujian provinces at that time reflected the wisdom of the central leadership led by Comrade Deng Xiaoping, and was also inseparable from the strong demand and determination for reform and opening-up among the leaders and cadres of the two provinces. The southeastern coastal areas have been more open historically than the inland regions, with a deeper sense of openness. During the reform and opening-up process in the southeastern coastal areas, both leaders and the public were mentally liberated, daring to explore, experiment, and take risks, and established a commodity concept earlier. The local governments in the southeastern coastal areas, especially in the southeastern coastal regions, quickly accepted the new ideas and concepts of the modern market economy, adapted well to changes at home and abroad, and effectively utilized all favorable opportunities and conditions. They boldly carried out system reform, fully and flexibly used all policies given by the central government, and conducted pioneering experiments in system reform, creating a series of new experiences to develop at an unconventional speed. In the early 1980s, Shenzhen pioneered the implementation of bonus systems in the country and was the first to shout the slogan "Time is money, efficiency is life." When people in the inland regions were still debating and viewing the "money smell" and "bonus-first" attitude of the Shenzhen people with critical eyes, the local government of Shenzhen, despite pressure, fully affirmed and actively supported the initiatives of enterprises, enabling them to create the nationally renowned "Shenzhen speed" and "Shenzhen experience."
Historically, the western region has been relatively closed, which inevitably has a profound impact on people's mindset. Reform lagged behind, concepts were backward, the inertia of the old system was large, the service awareness of the government was poor, the regulatory capacity was weak, the regulatory measures were backward, and the efficiency of handling affairs was low. Although the essence of our national traditional culture is also inherited and carried forward in the western region, there are still many conservative concepts that are incompatible with the socialist market economy. Some local leaders in the western region are accustomed to administrative orders under the traditional planned system, and the government still participates in specific issues such as what enterprises produce and how they produce. Enterprises also rely heavily on the government. The concept of seeking guidance from upper-level departments when encountering problems is still widespread among factory managers and executives.
On the other hand, the slower development of the western region, the higher proportion of state-owned enterprises, and the heavier burden they carry, as well as the lower fiscal revenue, also limit the regulatory strength of local governments. In 1997, the average fiscal self-sufficiency rate in central and western regions was only 56.3%, affecting the fulfillment of the service functions and the improvement of service levels of local governments.
II. Competition in Opening-Up Policies Among Different Regions Has Become Intense, and the Space for Preferential Policies Is Very Limited
During the development of the eastern region, the state adopted a strategy of opening up from east to west and from the coast to the inland, known as the gradient opening-up strategy, and provided a series of preferential policies to the special economic zones and coastal open cities. On August 8, 1980, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress approved the establishment of special economic zones in Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Shantou in Guangdong Province, and Xiamen in Fujian Province, making the four zones experimental fields for China's opening-up. On April 14, 1984, following the initiative of Comrade Deng Xiaoping, the central government decided to further open 14 coastal port cities, including Tianjin, Shanghai, Dalian, Qinhuangdao, Yantai, Qingdao, Lianyungang, Nantong, Ningbo, Wenzhou, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Zhanjiang, and Beihai, marking another important step in expanding China's opening-up. These 14 coastal open cities connected the "points" of the four special economic zones into a "line." On February 28, 1985, the Yangtze River Delta, the Pearl River Delta, and the Xiamen-Zhangzhou-Quanzhou triangle in southern Fujian were opened as coastal economic development zones. This way, the coastal opening-up, from "points" and "lines," formed an open "zone." On March 3, 1988, parts of Liaodong Peninsula, Shandong Peninsula, the Bohai Rim region, and some counties near the Beibu Gulf, as well as counties under the jurisdiction of coastal open cities, were included in the coastal economic open areas. The same year, on April 4, the State Council decided to make Hainan Province the largest special economic zone in the country, implementing more open policies than the other special economic zones at the time. On June 6, 1990, the Chinese government approved the development and opening-up of the Pudong area in Shanghai. The following year, border cities such as Suifenhe, Heihe, and Manzhouli in the inland border areas also gained special policies for border trade. In 1992, further opening-up measures were taken for four northeastern cities, including Manzhouli, Heihe, Suifenhe, and Hunchun. After more than 10 years of effort, China has formed a multi-level, targeted, and comprehensive opening-up pattern combining "special economic zones—coastal open cities—coastal economic open areas—inland areas."