The development of Xiongan New Area got a fresh boost in recent days, as Beijing and North China's Hebei Province signed an agreement to jointly support the planning of the new area.
Xiongan New Area has become a top priority and attracted much attention from both central and local government officials.
The Beijing municipal government and the Hebei provincial government have signed a strategic agreement to fully cooperate on various aspects of Xiongan's development, including transport infrastructure, environmental protection and public services, a Beijing official said on Monday.
"We will treat Xiongan affairs as our own," Liu Bozheng, an official with the Beijing Municipal Commission of Development Reform (BMCDR) who oversees the coordinated development of the Beijing-Hebei-Tianjin region (Jing-Jin-Ji), told a media briefing.
Beijing will encourage State-owned enterprises to join the development of Xiongan, another official with the BMCDR said at the same briefing, according to Beijing Daily.
"We encourage Beijing State-owned enterprises to relocate and develop in Xiongan New Area in good order, especially firms that can provide services in areas such as municipal infrastructure," he said.
The Beijing municipal government will support three schools and one hospital in the Xiongan New Area to raise the region's public services level, the official said.
In terms of transportation, Xiongan will be an important part of the Jing-Jin-Ji region's integrated transportation system, and in 2019 it will take 30 minutes for high speed trains to reach Xiongan New Area from Beijing, Liu noted.
The agreement highlights a new phase for the coordinated development of the Jing-Jin-Ji region and will drive synergy to ease non-capital functions for Beijing, while also helping with communication on important matters regarding relocation and forging integrated capacity in Xiongan New Area, the unnamed official said.
The Jing-Jin-Ji region is planning a coordinated development fund worth 50 billion yuan ($7.49 billion), which will be invested in transportation, ecology, industry, technological innovation and infrastructure construction, the official added.
