Further opening up China's inland and border regions

China’s opening up to the outside world started with its coastal areas and gradually expanded from east to west. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the inland and border areas have made remarkable progress, but generally they are still lagging behind the eastern and coastal areas. To remedy this, the Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening the Reform, adopted in November 2013, decided to further open up the inland and border areas.

The main contents of the decision include:

–taking advantage of the present opportunity, when world industries are restructuring, to promote coordinated development of trade, investment and technological innovation in inland areas;

–introducing new models for processing trade and creating mechanisms that are conducive to the growth of inland industry clusters;

–supporting inland cities to open more international passenger and freight air routes and develop multi-form through transport, so as to form a “corridor” of foreign trade that traverses eastern, central and western China and links up southern and northern China;

–promoting cooperation in customs clearance between inland areas and coastal and border areas, and realizing exchange of information, mutual recognition of supervision and mutual assistance in law enforcement between port management departments;

–accelerating the pace of opening up in border areas and allowing key local ports, border cities and economic cooperation zones to adopt special measures and policies with regard to personnel exchange, processing and logistics and tourism;

–setting up development-oriented financial institutions, accelerating the construction of infrastructure connecting China with neighboring countries and regions, and working hard to build the Belt and Road, so as to make new ground in pursuing opening up on all fronts.

Opening wider China’s inland and border areas is a major part of the country’s reform and opening up in the new era. The goal is to open China further through links running eastward and westward, across land and over sea, and promote regional coordinated development.

擴大內陸沿邊開放

中國的對外開放從沿海起步，由東向西漸次推進。黨的十八大以來，內陸和沿邊地區開放取得長足發展，但總體上還是對外開放的洼地。有鑒于此，2013年11月，《中共中央關于全面深化改革若干重大問題的決定》提出，擴大內陸沿邊開放。其主要內容是：抓住全球產業重新布局機遇，推動內陸貿易、投資、技術創新協調發展。創新加工貿易模式，形成有利于推動內陸產業集群發展的體制機制。支持內陸城市增開國際客貨運航線，發展多式聯運，形成橫貫東中西、聯結南北方的對外經濟走廊。推動內陸同沿海沿邊通關協作，實現口岸管理相關部門信息互換、監管互認、執法互助。加快沿邊開放步伐，允許沿邊重點口岸、邊境城市、經濟合作區在人員往來、加工物流、旅游等方面實行特殊方式和政策。建立開發性金融機構，加快同周邊國家和區域基礎設施互聯互通建設，推進絲綢之路經濟帶、海上絲綢之路建設，形成全方位開放新格局。擴大內陸沿邊開放是我國新時期改革開放的重要內容，其目標是推動內陸和沿邊地區從開放的洼地變為開放的高地，形成陸海內外聯動、東西雙向互濟的開放格局，進而形成區域協調發展新格局。