Speech by Yang Jing, Chairman of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Good morning!

First of all, I would like to extend a warm welcome to all correspondents and journalists from both home and abroad. I would also like to extend my cordial thanks to all the domestic and overseas news media for your report and publicity on Inner Mongolia for so many years!

You may find a detailed introduction to the economic and social development of Inner Mongolia on the written materials we prepared for you. Here, I would like to give you a brief introduction.

Founded on May 1st, 1947, Inner Mongolia Autonomous region is the first minority ethnic autonomous region at the provincial level in China . The past sixty years witnessed a successful practice of the minority ethnic autonomous policy of the Chinese Communist Party. These sixty years also witnessed a great and overall progresses gained in economy, politics, culture, and social undertakings, It was also the 60years of ethnic unity and prosperity.

Since the founding of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, especially in the recent years, Inner Mongolia adopted the scientific development approach, fully implemented the western development strategy. We not only attracted outside investments but also initiated regional vitality, not only accelerated development but also enhanced scientific orientated development, the economic structure has been optimized, the mode of development has been promoted, the quality and efficiency of the development has been significantly upgraded, and the coordinated and sustainable development has been continually strengthened. Inner Mongolia is now approaching to the rapid and optimized development path. In the year of 2006, the GDP of Inner Mongolia amounted to 479 billion Yuan, which was 196 times increase comparing to 537 Million Yuan of 1949. During the past 60 years, Inner Mongolia took 50 years to make GDP reach the first 100 billion Yuan, six years to reach the second 100 billion Yuan and only one year to reach the third and fourth. The per capita GDP of Inner Mongolia has increased from 96 Yuan in 1947 to 20, 047 Yuan in 2006, listed in the top 10th in the nation. The fiscal revenue of Inner Mongolia has increased from 90 thousand Yuan in 1947 to 71.29 billion Yuan in 2006. The per capita budgetary revenue listed in the top 11th in China . Among all the 101 counties and banners of Inner Mongolia , the fiscal revenue of 84 counties and banners exceeded 100 million Yuan and 13 exceeded one billion Yuan

While making economic progress, we have insisted on overall and coordinated development, promoted the overall construction of politics, culture and social undertakings. Last year, the average income of the urban and rural residents has increased to 10,358 Yuan and 3,342 Yuan, moving from the 29th and the 22nd place of the nation in 2002 up to the 12th and the 16th place respectively. Great efforts have been exerted to meet the practical needs to the poor and disadvantaged groups. Just during the 10th Five-Year Plan period, 920 thousand farmers and herdsmen steadily shook off poverty, more than 700 thousand urban residents received minimum living subsistence allowances, over 400 thousand extremely poverty stricken peasants and herdsmen received subsidy. Such difficulties and problems as the reemployment of zero-employment family, poor college students' enrollment, safe water issues of farmers and herdsmen, the improvement of production and living conditions in rural and pastoral areas have also been effectively solved.

Moreover, a strong and rational minority ethnic leading team involving government administration, business management, science technology and research, has been formed. The percentage of minority ethnic leading personnel in the motioned circle exceeds the percentage of them in the whole population. The percentage of minority ethnics in the social undertakings such as culture, education and art is even higher. A complete educational system with regional and ethnical characteristics covering from preschools to higher education, from common education to adult education, has been developed. The percentage of minority ethnic students in the schools is also higher than the percentage of minority ethnic population in the whole population. In addition, the minority ethnic culture and art, press and publication, health and physical culture have also been progressed considerable.

In the eighth CPC Inner Mongolia Conference convened at the end of last year, we clearly defined the following goals for future development: To promote the level of coordinated development and sustainable development; To keep the growing speed of the regional GDP and per capita GDP of urban and rural residence exceeding the national average, Ensuring the regional GDP and fiscal revenue be doubled, the regional economic volume be ranked at the middle place in the nation and the major per capita economic indicators enter into the top level in the nation. By the end of the first decade of this century, a vigorous Inner Mongolia, with strong overall strength, rational economic structure, distinguished regional characteristics, stable and harmonious society, will rise in the northern China .

Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, with even more opening mind, will welcome friends from both home and abroad to invest and establish business in Inner Mongolia, to promote the development of Inner Mongolia with us together. We also sincerely hope to strengthen the exchange and cooperation with the news media from both home and abroad. And we will be happy to invite all correspondents and journalists to visit Inner Mongolia, to see more and to understand more of the region, to report Inner Mongolia comprehensively, accurately, objectively and truthfully.

Next, my colleagues and I will be happy to answer your questions.

Thank you!