The city of Lu'an, on the Yangtze River in Anhui province, has been given an opportunity by central government policies that support the "rise of Central China" and industrial transfers from prosperous eastern provinces, and this is bringing an unprecedented burst of economic and social development.

The Anhui government wants to develop the province's cities and counties that lie along the Huaihe River-Yangtze River City Belt and Hefei Economic Circle, which is now under construction.

It so happens that Lu'an is on the Huaihe and Yangtze, and near the Dabieshan Mountains, which are in the government's development sights.

The city covers an 18,000-square-kilometer area and has a 7.05 million population, ranking the first and thrid place in the province respectively.

Mention of the city's name goes back as far as 121 BC, when the Wu emperor of the Han Dynasty used it to describe the region as "peace in six places".

It is also the source of "Gao Yao" culture, which refers to the legendary creator of China's legal system, about 4,000 years ago.

Other historic figures include the educator Wen Weng of the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24), the general Zhou Yu of the Three Kingdoms period (AD 220-280), and the painter Li Gonglin of the Song Dynasty (960-1279).

The area was an important revolutionary base before 1949 and is home to more than 100 generals, which has earned it the nickname, "cradle of generals". It is also one of the country's 12 major destinations for revolutionary, historically, and patriotically themed "red tourism".

Other riches

The city has a hydroelectric power capacity of 520,000 kilowatts, and accounts for nearly a third of the province's total.

Six reservoirs, one of the more prominent of which is Foziling, have a combined storage capacity of at least 7 billion cubic meters of water.

It is also a key agricultural production center with many products such as grains, edible oil, cotton, tea, chestnuts, farm animals and aquatic products. Two of these - Lu'an Guapian (a green tea), and the Wanxi goose - have a national reputation.

The city also has 40 types of minerals and one of its mining sites, Huoqiu, has 3 billion tons of iron ore reserves, the fifth largest in China.

Some of its natural beauty can be found in the Tiantangzhai National Forest Park, Baima Peak (the main peak of the Dabieshan Mountains), and the National Geological Park on the Dabieshan Mountains.

The city's downtown area claims that it has a green coverage of 36 percent, and the eco-friendly city has won many honors, such as the "China Habitat Environment" award, "Demonstration City for Water Environment Management" title, and "Anhui Garden City" award.

The city is proud of its sound financial system and business-friendly environment, and is one of the "National Investment Cities", 2009's "Charming Chinese Cities" and 2010's "Cities with the most investment potential".

Getting ahead

The local economy has been on the fast track over the past 10 years and has shown some real improvements, rising to the seventh place among cities in provincial GDP, with an average annual growth of 13.1 percent.

Its revenues have had a growth rate of 29.7 percent per year.

The city's industries contributes at least 58 percent to that growth and there has been a boom in investment, bringing changes to both urban and rural areas.

And its opening-up and reform policies have yielded results in finance, healthcare, public institutions, and management of forest rights and water.

Thanks to these changes, more people have been starting up companies and the private sector now accounts for more than 60 percent of the city's economy.

What's next?

The authorities have decided that they want to turn Lu'an into a prosperous, civilized, harmonious, and happy city, so over the next five years, they will emphasize a scientific development plan, with priority given to red tourism, minerals, agriculture, and culture in general.

By attracting more investment, and increasing industrialization and urban expansion, Lu'an wants to use all its possible advantages to make itself more competitive and open a new chapter in its development.

Sun Yunfei is the Party chief of Lu'an and Zhang Shaochun is mayor of the city.

(China Daily 12/09/2011 page57)