The State Council has officially approved the Central Economic Zone Plan to improve the development of Central China, following the closure of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, said Lu Zhangong, Party secretary of Henan province, Henan Daily reported on Wednesday.

The Central Economic Zone includes 30 prefecture-level cities and two counties, including Henan province, Jincheng, Changzhi and Yuncheng in Shanxi province, Handan and Xingtai in Hebei province, said Fan Hengshan, director of the Department of Regional Economy under the National Development and Reform Commission, on August 7.

The region covers an area of 289,000 square kilometers and 170 million people; the planning is from 2011 to 2020, he said.

The reason for the plan is to connect the cities in the region. They are traditional agricultural and major grain producing areas. The level of their economic development is the same, Fan said.

It's reported that under the plan, by 2015, the comprehensive grain production capacity will be increasing steadily, industrial structures will be optimized, urbanization will be increasing steadily and there will be equal access to basic and improving public services.

mengfanbin@chinadaily.com.cn