Chongqing- According to a press conference held on September 7, the Chongqing Metropolitan Area Development Plan clarifies that the Chongqing metropolitan area includes 21 districts in Chongqing and Guang'an City in Sichuan Province. 

The city of Guang'an, in northern Sichuan province, is the only prefecture-level city in the cross-province metropolitan area. Deng Xiaoping, the former premier and architect of China's economic reforms, was born here. The city is situated in picturesque surroundings and has some historical and cultural attractions, including the former residence of Deng Xiaoping, Huaying Mountain, and the Song dynasty tombs of An Bing.

Guang'an fully participates in Chongqing metropolitan area

"Based on the one-hour commuting circle, the Plan uses big data such as enterprises' mutual investments, commuting rates, and passenger and freight traffic flow," said an official from Chongqing Municipal Bureau of Planning and Natural Resources. "To determine the scope of the Chongqing metropolitan area, we analyze economic connections, population flows, transportation accessibility, and industrial collaboration."

As of 2020, the Chongqing metropolitan area includes 21 districts in Chongqing and Guang'an City, Sichuan Province, with a total area of 35,000 square kilometers and a permanent population of about 24.4 million.

Located in Sichuan, Guang'an is the nearest prefecture-level city to Chongqing's central area. It takes only one hour to drive between Chongqing and Guangzhou. Chongqing-Guangan High-Speed Railway will reduce the trip to 20 minutes once the Chongqing-Guangan section is implemented.

Regarding economic integration, 50% of Guang'an's industry supports Chongqing's industry, and 60% of tourists come from Chongqing. More than 70% of agricultural and sideline products are sold to Chongqing. In parallel, many Guang'an people travel to Chongqing yearly to live, study, and receive medical care.

Guang'an's industrial system has focused on Chongqing's equipment manufacturing, automobile and motorcycle, electronic information, and biomedicine industrial clusters to develop automobile and motorcycle parts, new energy vehicles, green chemical materials, and other industries. 

Promote balanced regional development

By integrating Guang'an with the central urban area of Chongqing, the surrounding area will be developed in a balanced way.

According to the Plan, the central urban area of Chongqing is set to serve as the core engine, leading to radiation. While Guang'an is the northern subcenter of the Chongqing metropolitan area, accelerating the co-city development with the central urban area.

In Chongqing, the districts of Bishan, Jiangjin, Changshou, and Nanchuan lead the way in achieving co-city development with the central urban area.

Five districts in Chongqing, Fulling District, Yongchuan District, Hechuan District, Qijiang District, and Wansheng Economic and Technological Development Zone will focus on improving industrial development, technological innovation, opening up to the outside world, creating regional transportation hubs, trade logistics centers, and public service centers.

By 2025, the development of the Chongqing metropolitan area will reach a new milestone, and an international, green, intelligent, and modern Chongqing metro area will be initially established.

(Zhu Qinzhuo, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)