Geographic Location and Transportation
Songjiang district is in the Yangtze Delta, in the southwest of Shanghai and along the upper and middle reaches of the Huangpu River. Songjiang is a core area to Shanghai and the Yangtze Delta region thanks to its transportation network, including the Shanghai-Hangzhou High-speed Railway, Shanghai-Hangzhou Highway (G60), Shanghai-Qingpu-Pingwang Highway (G50), Tongsan Expressway (G1501), Jiading-Jinshan Highway (G15) and Airport Highway (S32). Metro Line 9 provides quick access from Songjiang to downtown, making Songjiang an increasingly important gateway to Shanghai in the southwest.
Area
Songjiang district covers an area of 604.67 square kilometers, which is 9.5% of the total area of Shanghai. In the shape of a ladder, 87.91% of the area is land and the remainder is covered with water.
Physical Features
Songjiang district is in the low-lying area of Taihu Lake valley, which is very low in physical features with 27,000 hectares only about 3.2 meters above sea level.
Climate
Songjiang has a subtropical monsoon climate. It is temperate and moist with four seasons. In 2013, the average temperature for the year was 17.5 degrees Celsius, 1.3 degrees higher than average. There were 2,042.5 hours of sunshine, 242.6 hours more than average, and 1,160.9 millimeters of rainfall, 7.3 millimeters less than average. The highest temperature was 41.2 degrees Celsius and the lowest -4.0 degrees.
Water Resources
Songjiang’s water resources come from the Huangpu River, which gets its water from Dianshan Lake, Taihu Lake and Tianmu Mountain in Zhejiang Province, and then empties itself into the sea. All the rivers in the area are tidal ones.
History and Culture
Songjiang, once called Huating in ancient times, and also known as Yunjian, Rongcheng and Gushui, is a famous town south of the Yangtze River. In 751 of the Tang Dynasty, Songjiang was named Huating County. In 1277 during the Yuan Dynasty, it was named Huating Prefecture, which was changed to Songjiang Prefecture the next year. Then in 1895 in the Qing Dynasty it was developed into Songjiang Prefecture with Huating, Shanghai, Qingpu, Lou, Fengxian, Jinshan, Nanhui and Chuansha Counties subject to it. In 1912, when the prefecture was abolished, Huating and Lou were merged into Huating County. After liberation, the area became known as Songjiang Special District. In March 1958, it was called Suzhou Special District, and in November, it became a county of Shanghai. Then in February 1998, the State Council approved it to be a district.
By the end of 2013, Songjiang District governed 11 towns and four sub-districts. There are 185 neighborhood committees and 86 village committees in the district. In Songjiang there are state-level economic and technology development zones, the state-level Songjiang Export Processing Zone and Sheshan National Tourism and Resort Area. It’s a key area to be developed as Shanghai is shifting its development focus from urban to rural during the 12th Five-Year P eriod.
From 2003 to 2012, Songjiang received numerous awards including: international garden city from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), National Hygienic District, National Model Green City, National Landscaping Advanced City, National Ecological Water Conservancy District, China Human Settlement Model Award, National Double Support Model City, National Science Popularization Model City, National Cultural Relic Protection Model District and Top 10 Leisure City of China. Other honors include: National Leading Peace Construction District, National Leading Amateur Sports Activity Unit, National Advanced Economic Census Unit, National Model District on Using Land Intensively and Economically, National Leading Civil Air Defense Unit, National Model City for the Disabled, National Leading District on Legal Publicity, National Model District on Community Red Cross Service, National Leading Unit on Elderly Care, National Model City on Sunshine Home.
Economic Development
Economic Figures
In 2013, the economy of Songjiang realized stable development despite a complex situation both domestically and abroad, along with additional pressure due to efforts to restructure the economy. The GDP rose 3.5% year-on-year to 91.75 billion yuan (US$15.04 billion). The primary industry realized added value of 872 million yuan, up 2.6% from 2012. The secondary industry edged up 1.9% with added value of 54.4 billion yuan, and the service sector jumped 6% with added value of 36.477 billion yuan.
Fiscal Income
Fiscal income realized rapid development. In 2013, fiscal income reached 30.262 billion yuan, rising 9% from 2012. Among them, local fiscal revenue soared 17.2% to 10.347 billion yuan. And tax revenue increased 9.2% to 29.068 billion yuan.
The ranking of Songjiang among districts and counties in Shanghai suburbs
In 2013, Songjiang’s export volume ranked first among all districts and counties in Shanghai’s suburbs, and five other economic indicators including added value, total industrial output value, total fiscal income and contractual foreign investment. Bank deposits were the third most among all suburban districts and counties.
Industrial Structure
The industrial structure improved steadily in recent years. In 2013, the proportion of tertiary industry added value is 1.0:59.3:39.7, and the proportion of added value of the secondary industry dropped 1.7 percentage points from 2012, while the proportion of tertiary industry’s added value rose 1.6 percentage points, reaching a historical high.
Investment Structure
Songjiang accelerated the adjustment of fixed-asset investments. In 2013, the secondary industry received 7.457 billion yuan in investment, dropping 13.4% from a year ago, while tertiary industry investment rose 18.3% to 21.431 billion yuan. The proportion of tertiary industry investment is 0: 25.8:74.2. The ratio of secondary industry among total fixed-asset investment dropped 6.4 percentage points from 2012, while the tertiary industry rose 6.4 percentage points.
Development Plan
New Town Construction
Songjiang New Town is now complete. The construction of Songjiang New Town’s international ecological business district made smooth progress, including Dongming Hotel and Wanda Plaza. The construction of Guangfulin Culture Zone continues. The construction of Culture Exchange Center, Zhiye Temple and Ancient Architecture Zone has been completed. And the investment attraction in Thames Town has achieved bigger advancement.
Songjiang University Zone
Songjiang University Zone lies in the northwest corner of Songjiang New Town. The project was started in 2001 with a total area of 4.83 million square meters, including Shanghai Foreign Language University, Shanghai Institute of Foreign Trade, Shanghai Lixin University of Commerce, Donghua University, Shanghai University of Engineering Science, East China University of Political Science and Law and Shanghai Institute of Visual Arts.
Songjiang Economic and Technology Development Zone
The transformation and upgrading of industrial zones has accelerated. Songjiang Industrial Zone has been upgraded as a state-level economic and technology development zone, attracting investment in the Internet of Things, a data center and software park. Songjiang Export Processing Zone has accelerated its transformation into a comprehensive bonded area. In 2013, the industrial zone had total output value of 223.215 billion yuan, accounting for 58.5% of total industrial output in the district. It attracted contractual foreign investment of US$284 million yuan, accounting for 35.8% of the district’s total contractual foreign investment. It had total exports worth US$28.809 billion, accounting for 80.5% of the district’s total, and had a fixed asset investment of 3.39 billion yuan, accounting for 11.7% of total investment in the district.
Sheshan National Tourism and Resort Area
Sheshan National Tourism and Resort Area is famous for its history, culture and religious sites. It’s the only naturally hilly resort in Shanghai. In 2013, the area received 5.89 million visitors, rising 19.6% from 2012 and accounting for 56% of all visitors to Songjiang District. In the meantime, various scenic spots in the area witnessed further improvements, including the completion and opening of Shanghai Playa Maya Water Park in Happy Valley’s phase II project, and the smooth progress made with Shanghai Shimao New Experience Intercontinental Hotel and Shimao New Experience Center.
No comments:
Post a Comment