More funding, support urged for Ningbo's Qianwan New Area

National lawmaker called on departments concerned to beef up policy support and earmark more funds to expedite key projects of Shanghai-Zhejiang Cooperation Development Zone in Ningbo's Qianwan New Area, East China's Zhejiang province.

Fu Guirong, a deputy to the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, submitted the proposal during the annual session of the NPC this year.

In the proposal, Fu, who is also the Party Secretary of Yuyao, a county-level city in Ningbo, suggested formulating detailed construction plan of the development zone in Qianwan New Area at a faster pace, to lay an institutional foundation for its long-term growth.

As the 604-square-kilometer Qianwan New Area sits at the juncture of Shanghai, Ningbo and Zhejiang's provincial capital Hangzhou, the development zone boasts geographic advantages, Fu said, adding that strong economic strength, solid industrial foundation and great development potential also sharpens its competitive edge.

The development zone is now gradually becoming a hub of such advanced manufacturing industries as automobile manufacturing and high-end equipment. In 2022, the GDP in the development zone exceeded 83.21 billion yuan, according to Fu.

The development zone, if injected more policy and fund support, could turn itself into another "Greater Bay Area" in Zhejiang in the years to come, and foster a new growth driver for cross-regional development, he added.

Construction of the development zone in Qianwan New Area has already been outlined in the regional integrated development plan of Yangtze River Delta jointly issued by the Communist Party Central Committee and the State Council in 2019, to make it a new home for Shanghai's non-core functions and explore a new mechanism for coordinated development of inter-provincial adjacent regions.