Guangzhou: the rise and rise of global metropolis

Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, is registering progress in building an open and inclusive international metropolis.

The night view of Canton Tower in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, on Oct 3, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua]

According to a research report carried out by the Guangdong Academy of Social Science, Guangzhou's average annual growth rate of GDP has been 6.8 percent since 2016, 0.3 percentage points higher than the national growth rate of 6.5 percent in the same period.

Guangzhou's total GDP in 2019 alone reached 2.36 trillion yuan ($363.1 billion), accounting for one-fourth of the total in Guangdong province.

And in 2019, the per capita GDP of Guangzhou reached more than 150,000 yuan, approaching the level of high-income countries and regions, the report said.

Guangzhou's business volume of express delivery hit 6.35 billion last year, coming first in the country, the report said.

The construction of "digital infrastructural facilities" is also being accelerated in the city with 20,261 5G stations constructed in the previous year.

"Guangzhou now has the largest number of 5G stations and its construction of 5G facilities is the fastest in the mainland," said the report.

The southern metropolis, which has held China Import and Export Commodities Fair, known as Canton Fair, for more than 60 years, is also the host city of many major international conferences and events in recent years.

Guangzhou has also achieved progress in construction of an international shipping center and aviation hub in recent years.

Guangzhou Port now operates a total of 217 international container ocean routes to more than 200 international ports and cities, with the city's cargo throughput and container business volume reaching top five in the world.

And Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport has become the third-largest airport in the mainland. The airport, which handles 230 international flights, registered more than 70 million passenger/visits last year.

Guangzhou's foreign trade volume came to more than 473.78 billion yuan in 2019, up 12.7 percent year-on-year and coming first in major foreign trade cities in the mainland.

Guangzhou's unemployment rate has been lower than 2.5 percent since 2016. The city is surveyed to become to first choice for the inflow of talents in China thanks to its continuously improving working and living environment in recent years.

In cultural construction, Guangzhou has constructed Guangzhou Opera House, Guangzhou Library, Guangzhou National Archives, Nanyue Palace Museum and other major cultural infrastructural facilities in the previous years, demonstrating its rich and historical culture.

Now Guangzhou has built a total of 433 public libraries, or outlets, achieving its goal of having a library for every 80,000 people ahead of schedule.

The city has also constructed 64 museums, 12 cultural centers and 2,702 village (community) cultural service centers, allowing the city's area of public cultural facilities of every 10,000 residents to reach 1,515 square meters, coming first in mainland.