Loufeng Town neighbors on Suzhou Ancient District which is in the west and SIP in the east, connects with Xiangcheng District in the north and Wuzhong District in the south. It is taken over by SIP in May, 1994. It has 4 sub-districts including Township, Loudong, Xietang and Chefang, with a total coverage of 70 sq km and a permanent population of 150,000 (plus 150,000 floating one). It owns 3 representative’s offices, 9 administrative villages, 30 neighborhood committees under its jurisdiction. As an economically powerful town in SIP, the development of Loufeng draws close attention from SIPAC, Suzhou Municipal Government and Jiangsu Provincial Government. For many years, it maintains a tendency of healthy, rapid and sustainable development with an increase of more than 30％ in various major economic indexes and a rural net income per capita over 14,000RMB. Loufeng is entitled as No.1 town in terms of comprehensive socio&eco competitiveness and external-oriented economy provincial wide and ranks NO.5 in the Top 1000 Towns national wide.Our purpose is to build Loufeng as the sub-center of a modern city in southern SIP.
In 2008, driven by the call of 17th national congress of CPC, the whole Loufeng unswervingly sticks to the philosophy of giving priority to scientific and harmonious development. It accelerates the step in all respects to transform and update its economic pattern and goes all out to facilitate new socialist countryside construction. As a result, the regional growth demonstrates a sound state featuring rapid growth, optimized structure, enhanced efficiency and improved civil life. The Loufeng government attaches great importance to the following 5 points in recent years:
Optimizing and updating industrial structure
In 2007, the town boasted 19.5 billion RMB GDP, 1.75 billion RMB regional general budget revenue (GBR), 1.09 billion dollars newly-registered foreign capital (FC), 0.37 billion dollars utilized FC and 8.5 billion newly-registered domestic capitals. The registered and utilized FC topped and regional GBR ranked 3rd among all towns in Suzhou. To achieve this, an important economic strategy was adopted, i.e. unswervingly sticking to hold foreign and domestic capital together as well as paralleling tertiary industry with secondary industry.
Firstly, the town maximizes the radioactive effect of SIP to boost its export-oriented economy. To date, the town takes lead in newly-registered and utilized FC. It enjoys over 80 projects which worth more than 10 million dollars, of which there are 40 projects more than 30 million dollars and 5 more than hundred millions dollars. Additionally, over 10 projects are directly invested by Fortune 500 around the world.
Secondly, it makes full use of geographic location-close to Suzhou ancient city proper and modern SIP and it also enjoys preferential policy supports, such as tax incentive, so as to impose positive governmental regulation to encourage and support leading enterprises to go public and to encourage privately-owned business (POB) to create a desirable situation featuring diversified, interactive and complementary development with export-oriented economy. In 2006, the successful listing of Suzhou Gold Mantic Construction Decorative Co.,Ltd and New Sea Union Telecom Devlp Co., Ltd on Shenzhen Stock Exchange, blazed a trail toward capital market for all companies in our town. Other enterprises are inching their ways closer to stock exchange. Up to now, POB has already accounted for 50% of township economic volume and newly-added privately-owned capital ranks 1st among all towns in Suzhou.
Thirdly, it speeds up structural adjustment of industry. The proportion of agriculture to township economic volume is considerable small, while secondary and tertiary industry accounts for 43% and 57% respectively. Recently, Loufeng has over 860 foreign and 7500 domestic enterprises, forming a Hi-Tech industry base pillared by electronic information, precision machinery, bio-pharmaceutics and modern service industry.
Promoting its functions as a city sub-center.
While accelerating industrialization, the town also boosts urbanization.
Firstly, owing to the advantageous location, Loufeng benefits a lot from Suzhou’s urbanization drive and rapid development of SIP.
Secondly, with the guidance of a master plan, the town has complied with the procedure –planning before building, underground before ground to develop its area. It successively marked out and established 4 sub-districts including township, Loudong, Xietang and Chefang with a sound order, which lays the good foundations for investment promotion.
Thirdly, large-scale villager resettlement pushes forward the urbanization drive. Ever since the start of SIP, Loufeng has relocated 30,000 households of villagers.
Fourthly, high standard construction boots its urbanization. Based on its orientation as a sub-center of the city, Loufeng has updated its infrastructure in a high level. So far, it has spent inconsecutively about 20billion RMB to perfect the local infrastructure and promote the city functions, which is almost done and seamlessly connects with Suzhou downtown area and SIP. Furthermore, it actively afforests and beautifies itself, with a green coverage ratio over 40%. Loufeng recently has become a sub-center in the southern part of Suzhou, which evolves from a agriculture-oriented town depending on planting “8 vegetables”, i.e. indian rice, hindu lotus, water cress, semen euryales, oldworld arrowhead, water chestnut, water shield and singharanut, into a modern center featuring secondary and tertiary industries.
Building up a long-term mechanism to enrich and benefit people.
The core of the socialist new countryside construction lies in enriching people.
In this area, Loufeng has implemented “5 methods” at the same time to help the mass. As a result, its residential net income per capita has increased more than 10% year on year. Here is a detailed introduction of the “5 methods”.
Firstly, the town provides technical trainings for peasants without lands to enable those who desire to work to find jobs at local companies. Since the rising of SIP, those people are provided with vocational trainings and employment recommendation, 90% of them in Loufeng find jobs. Only less than 3% of them remain jobless, which is set as a criterion for unemployment control.
Secondly, it supports entrepreneurs to start their own businesses. By expanding and strengthening private-owned businesses (POB), as well as supporting entrepreneurs, the town can reserve more resources and room for local POBs, and fostering more and more “young bosses” and “new bosses”. For recent years, the number of POBs and small private businesses in Loufeng has increased more than 800.
Thirdly, the town welcomes forms like Shareholding cooperative system (SCS), in a bid to increase investment revenue for resettled farmers. The town has completed the reform of SCS in communities around it and sets up Investment Corporations for People’s Enrichment. Thereinto, supported by Dongjing Company, Xietang District sets up the largest Shareholding Cooperative Association at scale in Suzhou and it has already shared bonus this year. Xietang will also organize Jian Ci professional Cooperative Association to increase the production of “8 vegetables” and to boost householders’ incomes. Furthermore, the town tries all means to reserve and increase collective assets. Now it has already formed a desirable layout featuring several high-quality standard factory buildings of VC Company in towship area, of Dongjing Company in Xietang and of Chefang Company in Chefang.
Fourthly, it standardizes the apartment renting market and actively widens channels for the mass to earn more. With about 150,000 floating population in the town, rent has been viewed as a major income for those resettled farmers. Owing to positive guide and regulation over relocated houses, it is possible for every resettled household to earn more about 10,000 RMB per year. Additionally, the town has accelerates the construction of standard factory (SF). Now it has more than 150,000,000 sq meters of SF.
Fifthly, the town strengthens fiscal transfer payment to enhance social security. Social security system has covered the whole town; therefore farmers can be involved in the SIP Provident Fund and the Urban and Suburban Medical care system and state-unified medical system for major diseases. Since the takeover of land from farmers in 2004, the policy –“land for security”- substantially resolved the troubles of relocated households. The town also set up a poverty relief system for the social and countryside disadvantaged groups.
To make various social undertakings develop in a harmonious way.
In order to achieve this goal, the inner quality of the villagers should be improved so as to raise the overall civilization level of the town.
Firstly, the town puts more money into the education and public health causes. It successively allocated millions of RMB to establish 9 schools, such as No.1 Middle School, SIP, Lianhua School, No.1 and No.2 Primary School, which thoroughly improved its educational environment. As a result, the children of farmers without lands can go to local schools and receive high standard modern education; moreover, they can enjoy 9-year compulsory education without any fees. The town also set up 1 hospital and 10 community healthcare centers to provide people with a convenient and high-quality healthcare service, solving people’s haunting problem of difficult and expensive accesses to medical service.
Secondly, it pays close attention to the spiritual civilization. It actively pushes forward programs to publicize science&technology, culture, public health and legal service in the villages and communities. Libraries, fitness clubs, basketball playgrounds, banqueting halls and others have been built in relocation community to prosper community culture. All these are aimed at meeting the living, spiritual, and cultural demands of the mass.
Thirdly, the town enhances the management of community construction. It is needed to build a community system for the relocated village and to it is also necessary to improve the community’s structure and working system. The administrative and finance affairs of village should be available to the public so that they can be involved in the public affairs. All these will add transparency to the decision-making and policy implementation system. Urban community estate management is brought in, then the service will gradually be marketized to raise the level of community service and to positively lead the transition from relocated farmers to urban residents.
Fourthly, the town purposefully carries out the education and training program for farmers to foster modern farmers with culture, technology and business knowledge.This is a critical period for Loufeng to transform industrial pattern and boost urbanization. Since SIP proposes a guiding spirit, i.e. take the lead in building SIP as an eco-exemplary zone of resource-conservation and government-friendly, a Si&Tech zone of outstanding complex effect of R&D center and Hi-Tech industry, and a demonstration zone of modern Biz&Trade logistics center supported by virtual port. SIP is oriented as one of the most developed and competitive industrial parks in China, In response to that, Loufeng firmly grasps the guideline-transformation, optimization, boosting and innovation，adheres to scientific outlook on development, and stresses the theme of harmonious society. It will further seize the opportunity to advance with the time, making great efforts to maintain a more-than-25% increase in major economic indexes this year. By 2014, they will be doubled than those in 2004. It is possible for an all-round realization of “Two Priorities” at high-level and high-initial-point. |
