China plans to create 20 city clusters: report   

中国将分三类打造20个城市群 规划已进入编制阶段

我国城市群规划正在紧锣密鼓地编制。《经济参考报》记者近日获悉，作为城市群规划编制前期工作的城市群范围和战略定位专题研究报告将于本月完成。在此基础上，国家发改委将编制跨省区城市群规划，并于今年年底前报送国务院审定。[查看全文]

(ECNS) -- The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China's top economic planner, will create a more coherent city cluster plan, with 20 such initiatives on the cards, Economic Information Daily reports.

The plan will be submitted to the State Council, China's cabinet, for approval by the end of 2015.

City clusters are comprised of at least one main city, considered the hub, and several surrounding conurbations, with integrated transportation links aiming to drive economic growth, strengthen urban integration, and influence migration patterns.

The government will focus on five national mega city clusters: the Yangtze River Delta centered around Shanghai, the Pearl River Delta based around Guangzhou, the Beijing-Tianjin-Heibei area, the city cluster in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze, and the Chengdu urban cluster. Other regional city clusters are also being developed.

According to official statistics, city clusters cover 25 percent of China's total land area, but hold 62 percent of the country's population and 98 percent of foreign capital investment, thus having a substantial impact on overall national development.

With rapid urbanization and industrialization, city clusters have become key elements in China's productivity and economic growth, said Fang Chuanglin, director of the Urban Planning Research Center at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The city cluster plan will overcome barriers caused by administrative fragmentation and enable the integration and efficient allocation of resources, according to Ren Wenhui, director of Department of Development and Planning, NDRC's Cities and Small Towns Development Center.

City clusters will also deliver development opportunities for small and medium-sized cities as well as promote human movement and economic activity at regional and national levels, he added.