SHENYANG, April 6 (Xinhua) -- The Shenyang experimental
economic zone plan has been approved by the State Council for
northeast China's Liaoning Province, making the Shenyang economic
zone the eighth experimental reform region in China, the governor
of Liaoning Province announced here Tuesday.
The theme of the zone's reform plan is "new
industrialization," emphasizing information technology in the
region's industrial upgrading.
The Shenyang economic zone, centered on Shenyang city, covers
an area of 75,000 square kilometers and includes seven other
cities, namely Anshan, Fushun, Benxi, Yingkou, Fuxin, Liaoyang and
Tieling.
The population of the economic zone is 23.59 million, with 65
percent residing in urban areas. The area's gross domestic product
in 2009 was estimated at 998.47 billion yuan.
The intention of creating the zones was to encourage
innovation that could later be applied to other regions, said Zhang
Xiaopu, deputy director of Liaoning Development and Reform
Commission.
The country's seven other experimental economic zones are
Shanghai's Pudong area, Tianjin's Binhai region, Shenzhen City,
Wuhan City, Chengdu City, central China Hunan Province's Changsha,
Zhuzhou, Xiangtan cities, and southwest China's Chongqing City.
The first experimental economic zone was established in
Shanghai in 2005.
