From Farmland To Wonderland

The rise of the Pudong New Area in Shanghai

The Huangpu River, winding through Shanghai, separates the city into an east and west section called Pudong and Puxi, respectively. Although both are part of the same city, they grew at totally different speeds in the past. Looking across from the Bund in Puxi, Pudong was a vast land with low-rise houses and tracts of farmland. The only transportation linking the two sides was a ferry system.

This all began to change on April 18, 1990, when, as part of the continued reform and opening-up process, China decided to develop the Pudong area and named it Pudong New Area. By then, China’s reform and opening up had been carried out for more than 10 years. Pudong was somewhat of a late passenger boarding the reform and opening-up express train. But its development has been extraordinary.

Paving the way

Weng Zuliang, Party Secretary of Pudong New Area, divides the development of Pudong into three phases. The first, between 1990 and 2001, was the fast development phase, with a lot of infrastructure construction and a series of preferential policies from the Central Government introduced.

The second, between 2001 to 2012, was the comprehensive development phase, with pilot comprehensive reforms carried out and taking the lead in establishing and improving a socialist market economic system in line with international practices.

The third, which began in 2012 and continues today, is the innovative and transformative development phase with the setting up of China’s first pilot free trade zone (FTZ), enhancing hi-tech innovation and steering development in a more environmentally friendly direction.