China (Gansu) Industrial Development and Transfer activities started in Lanzhou, northwest China’s Gansu Province, on October 27, 2024. Photo: Xinhua

China (Gansu) industrial transfer and development activities kicked off on Sunday in Lanzhou, northwest China’s Gansu province, where deals worth more than 300 billion yuan ($40.98 billion) are expected to be signed ), according to the Xinhua news agency.

This event, co-hosted by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) and the Gansu Provincial Government, is part of the nation’s efforts to promote more balanced regional development, further unleashing growth opportunities for the central and western regions of the country.

Agreements covering 195 projects are expected to be signed at the event, involving sectors such as new energy, equipment manufacturing, petrochemicals, biopharmaceuticals and non-ferrous metallurgy.

“Promoting development in China’s western regions has a long history, and this event marks another proactive effort by local governments to further advance this initiative,” said Li Chang’an, a professor at Beijing University of International Affairs and Economics. , for Global. Or Sunday.

Li noted that previous efforts to promote development in the western regions have focused primarily on financial and talent support, with some attempts at industrial collaboration. Now, the focus is on industrial alignment, using tiered transfers and partnerships to build a modernized industrial system that capitalizes on the unique strengths of regions like Gansu, Li said.

The central government recently issued a directive to facilitate the orderly transfer of capital, technology and labor-intensive industries from eastern regions to central and western areas, as well as from large cities to inland regions, according to media reports.

Many regions have actively responded to the central government’s directive this year to facilitate the orderly transfer of key industries by formally launching initiatives to support industrial relocation and development.

In September, Northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province carried out activities combining industrial transfer and development, resulting in 172 projects signed at the opening ceremony, with a total value exceeding 250 billion yuan, according to Heilongjiang Daily. These projects cover sectors such as the digital economy, aerospace, state-of-the-art equipment, new materials, biopharmaceuticals and intelligent agricultural machinery.

Similar events were held in southwest China’s Yunnan province in September, attracting high-profile attendees including Fortune Global 500 companies, China’s Top 500 and leading private companies.

China’s western regions are key to the country’s future industrial development, especially when it comes to establishing a robust and secure industrial chain, Li said, noting that the western regions have unique strengths in areas such as green development, complementing the eastern region. and promoting coordination. growth in the national industrial landscape.

Since the beginning of this year, MIIT has organized six industrial transfer and docking activities with provinces in the western and northeastern regions, attracting the participation of more than 5,500 companies and promoting the continuous expansion of the scale of China’s industrial transfers.