Dear Media Friends,

Good morning!

It is my great pleasure to join today's press conference and exchange ideas with all of you. First, on behalf of the People's Government and the CPC Committee of Jilin Province, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to you media friends for your concern and support to the development of Jilin Province for the past years.

Jilin Province locates in the middle of Northeast China and is a inland and border province while near the sea. It connects with Russia and North Korea by land and is separated from Japan and South Korea by sea. It covers an area of 187,400 square kilometers and possesses a population of 27.34 million. Its GDP in 2008 totaled 642.4 billion Yuan. All these numbers were about 2% of the nation's total. It is an important industry and commercial grain production base and produces the biggest number of automobiles and holds the highest commercial grain percentage. The favourable ecological environment and high forest coverage, which is up to 42.5%, make it an ideal place for settlement.

Over the past five years after the State Council launched the strategy of revitalizing the old industrial bases of Northeast China, Jilin Province seized tight the opportunity, overcame the obstacles that is holding the reform and development, made breakthrough in the reform of state owned enterprises, completed the reforming of 3,300 state owned enterprises, and therefore initially laid the systematic foundation for development. Great efforts were made in investment-driven economy, with an over 40% growth of investment for the last four consecutive years and above 20,000 Yuan of annual per capita investment volumn, which has accumulated strength for future development. The economic structure was optimized. Last year, the ratio of second industry increased by 6.4% compared with 2003, GDP in the townships reached 51.4% of the province and the increased volume of individual economy totaled 41.7%. The agricultural production capability was brought to a new level. The grain output topped 25 million tons for 5 years out of 6. Significant achievements were made in attracting business and investment. The foreign capital in place in last year reached 3.01 billion USD, 5 times of 2003. The hardest time has passed and Jilin Province's economic and social construction is now maintaining rapid and good development. The provincial GDP increase maintained over 12% for the past five years in a row, with more than 15% for the year 2006, 2007 and 2008, ranking the 3rd place of the nation for three continuous years. From the beginning of this year, Jilin Province has sticked to the macro economic policies of the central government and actively combated the international financial crisis. Its economic development kept a good and rapid momentum. The main indexes are better than the national average. The GDP in the first three quarters increased by 12.1% over last year.

Northeast China, and Jilin Province in particular, has a long standing less export-oriented economy, whish has become an outstanding obstacle for containing the revitalization. In the process of the revitalization of the old industrial base, we insist on expanding opening up and implementing the strategy spearheaded by opening up, namely, greater opening for greater development. Setting foot on our own location and conditions and looking forward to a long term and overall development, we started to plan the building Changchun-Jilin-Tumenjiang Development and Opening-up Pilot Area in 2007, and has won the attention and support from the central government. On Aug.30th of 2009, the State Council issued the "Planning outline of Cooperation and Development in Tumenjiang River Region—Taking Chang-Ji-Tu as the Opening up and Development Pilot Zone". This planning outline is the strategy to improve the opening up level of border regions, an important step to further the revitalization of old industrial bases in Northeast China, and a new and important opportunity to speed up the reform, opening up and development in Jilin Province.

Chang-Ji-Tu is the abbreviated name of Changchun City, part of Jilin City and Yanbian Korean Ethic Autonomous Prefecture, of which the area and population account for 1/3 of Jilin Province while the overall economic power exceed half. This region is the core area of Tumenjiang River development area and will greatly support the overall development. According to the outline, to build Chang-Ji-Tu Opening up and Development Pilot Zone, we should stand in Tumen River, face Northeast Asia, serve greater Northeast China, make Huichun the opening up window, Yanji, Longjing and Tumen the opening up frontier, Changchun, Jilin the main supporter, stimulate the interaction between border regions and the hinterlands for better opening up and development, let this region develop first and try to build a strong economic zone and opening up pilot area to drive the rapid revitalization of Jilin Province.

As an important opening up and development area in China, Chang-Ji-Tu Pilot Zone will have a historical influence on the opening up and development process of Jilin Province. The State Council pointed out that "four important points" and "two zones" could well describe the function of this region which means to build this region into an important opening up and development boundary areas, an important window facing Northeast Asia, an important platform for economic and technological cooperation in Northeast Asia, an important economic motivation in Northeast China and the pilot zone and model zone for the opening up and development of border areas. All this tells the important position of Chang-Ji-Tu Pilot zone in the overall opening up pattern of China which requires better transportation channels and international cooperation in this region. Speeding the opening up and economic development of Chang-Ji-Tu Pilot Zone and letting it play the strategic role in Northeast China will greatly promote the comprehensive revitalization of Jilin Province as well as the whole old industrial base of Northeast China.

After the State Council approved the building of Chang-Ji-Tu Pilot Zone, CPC Jilin Provincial Committee and Provincial Government attached great importance to this task and was busy with making work distribution. An leading office was set up to be responsible for the implementation job, establishing working mechanism and program, compiling specific implementing concepts, making specific plans for different areas and detailed goals, fixing responsibilities and organizing the implementation. First, promote policy and mechanism innovation. Taking the test rights bestowed by the nation, explore the ways in borrowing sea port, building general bonded area and cross border economic cooperation area. Secondly, clear export channels. Reinforce the construction of road, railway, port and other transportation infrastructures, consolidate the current joint highway and water ttransportation lines and build a dimensional, convenient and rapid passageway. Thirdly, make a reasonable distribution for the main production activities in the region. Under the current condition, develop industries with special characteristics, speed up the construction of key projects, build a new industrial base with core competitiveness. Fourthly, set up an efficient cooperative platform. In addition to the Northeast Asia Investment and Trade Expo, accelerate the construction of international and inter-provincial industrial parks and development zones, create new way to attract external investment and promote regional economic cooperation. Fifthly, accelerate financial service innovation. Actively bring the international and domestic financial service institutions such as finance, bond and insurance firms and so on into the pilot zone to set up first batch of venture capital trial sites in China to improve financial service. Sixthly, make technology and talents support the regional development. Taking advantage of the science and education resources in the region, reinforce technological cooperation and talents training and introduction, provide technology and intelligence support for the construction of Chang-Ji-Tu pilot zone.

Under the correct leadership of CPC Central Committee and the State Council, with the great support of relevant state organizations, in a few years' efforts, we are totally confident and determined to reach the goal of building of Chang-Ji-Tu Pilot Zone into an international cooperation platform with high level of opening up, a pilot zone for the structural reform of an inland area opening-up based on border coopeartion, a piece of land leading in the development of industrial competiveness, a significant engine to drive Jilin and northeast China, and thus contribute to the country's new pattern of opening-up. I would like to take this chance to invite friends with vision from home and abroad to participate in the building of Chang-Ji-Tu Pilot Zone , share the development opportunities. Jilin Province will offer service for sincere cooperation and mutual development.

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