Category Archives: Ai Chi-Han

Performance assessment report – Air quality management of cities in China

air quality

《中国城市空气质量管理绩效评估报告》 是由中国人民大学环境学院教授宋国君和马中教授所共同完成的,对中国281个地级及以上城市 (截止到2010年)的空气质量现状与变化趋势 (2005年至2010年) 进行了城市空气质量评估。

评估结果显示,总体上空气质量好的城市占调查总城市数的10.67%,差的城市占75.80%,极差的城市占13.52%。空气质量好的城市包括阳江 (GDP 136名)、黄山 (GDP 159名)、茂名 (GDP 144名) 等,空气质量好的城市中,经济发展水平低的城市所占比例大。而空气质量差的城市中包括辽源、兰州、武汉、乌鲁木齐、北京、南京、西安等。

报告中也向民众针对空气质量提出问卷调查,其中有46.02%表示对于现在的城市空气质量状况不满,但也有71.26%的居民认为空气质量较之前有明显改善。

详细的简本可以在“环境能源经济数据库”网站(http://www.3edata.com)查看和下载。

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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The recovering Dian Lake

The recovering Dian Lake, Ai Chi-Han

近20年来,随着滇池周围的经济发展和城市规模的扩大,加重了滇池流域生态环境的压力,导致湖泊严重富营养化,内湖水呈暗黄绿色,含有有机、有害、有毒物质,大量氮、磷、重金属及砷沉积于湖底,形成底质很厚、很肥的淤泥;淤泥中有动植物残体、呈黑色,味极臭。滇池平均深度仅剩4米,不及早期深度10米的一半。

为保护滇池,1988年7月1日起颁布实施的昆明市地方性法规《滇池保护条例》以提升滇池的水质,并减少污染,2013年1月1日政府根据《滇池保护条例》进行修正并重新执行,除了规范污水排放之外,还设立滇池保护专项资金来进行生态补偿,目的不但要减轻滇池的污染状况外,还要回复滇池的天然原貌。

在「城镇化中国UrbThe recovering Dian Lake, Ai Chi-Hanachina」第三次年度大会中,与会成员参观了滇池边从事环保高新技术开发的公司,其净化滇池水质的方式,是以构建滇池蓝藻水华屏障,并剔除蓝藻与水体物理化过滤的净化,剔除的蓝藻通过压滤机压滤脱水,获得含水量为75~80%藻饼,此藻饼可进一步形成无害资源化生产生物有机肥料。而经由蓝藻物理提取的水质净化,可实现劣Ⅴ类水净化后能达到地表Ⅳ类水。

然而,虽然透过水质净化后,滇池的污染程度已有明显改善,但以滇池的污染情况与水质净化的速度来说,昆明市的企业及政府单位仍有很漫长的路途要走。

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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国五条细则比较

自2013年起,中国大陆各地开始实施「国务院常务会议的五项加强房地产市场调控的政策措施」,简称国五条,主要内容包括:

  1. 要求各级城市要按照保持房价基本稳定的原则。
  2. 严格执行商品住房限购措施,在各城市中规划限购区域、限购住房类型、购房资格审查等方面,按统一要求完善限购措施。
  3. 增加普通商品住房及用地供应。
  4. 加快保障性安居工程规划建设。全面落实2013年城镇保障性安居工程基本建成470万套、新开工630万套的任务。
  5. 加强市场监管。加强商品房预售管理,严格执行商品房销售明码标价规定。

而从2013年2月起,中国大陆各级城市开始推出国五条的细则,以下为我们整理出各城市的国五条细则摘要:

限購令比較

数据来源: 《北京市人民政府办公厅贯彻落实”国务院办公厅关于继续做好房地产市场调控工作的通知” 精神进一步做好本市房地产市场调控工作的通知》、《昆明市人民政府办公厅关于继续做好房地产市场调控工作的通知》、《上海市人民政府办公厅关于继续做好房地产市场调控工作的通知》、《重庆市人民政府办公厅关于继续做好房地产市场调控工作的通知》

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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居住证将取代户籍制度?

English version of this article can be found at the website of Reuters: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/06/us-china-parliament-urbanisation-idUSBRE92509020130306

A Farmer stands in front of his farm (Chongqing), Ai Chi-Han

路透社在2013年3月6日引述来自于中国政府消息人士,指出目前中国政府正准备推行全国居住证制度,以取代现行的户口制度。

这位来自政府的消息来源指出,中国政府对于户籍制度的态度是要逐渐淡化 “城市与农村”的户籍鸿沟,并确认在新的体制下人民的福利及权利能达到平等,但这项改革将是渐进的,而目前没有确切的达成时间。

路透社同时引述美国华盛顿大学人口专家陈金永说,户籍制度不改革,中国不仅不能产生一个不断壮大的中产阶级,相反会在城市出现一个巨大的贫民人口。

然而,中国在户籍制度改革的过程中,将面临最大的困难就是政府财政上的支出,这位来自于政府的消息来源指出,未来在保障农民福利待遇的经费支出上,将总体上让中央和地方政府以及雇用农民工的企业负担这笔资金。

 

 

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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Dian Lake – Recovering a sparkling pearl embedded in a highland

Dianchi-Kunming, Hu Ying
Dian Lake, also known as Kunming Lake, is the largest freshwater lake in Yunnan Province. Dian Lake is located south of Kunming city, 5 kilometers from the city centre. Because of its magnificent scenery, Dian Lake has always been a popular holiday resort. It is an important asset not only for tourism, but is also for econmic activities such as shipping, fishing, irrigation, water provision, etc. In 1988, Dian Lake was awarded a status as one of the National Scenic Areas by the State Council1. However, tourism has not always been a blessing for Dian Lake. Since 1980, as a result of rapid urbanisation in China, water pollution in Dian Lake has been progressively increasing2.

The reasons for the deterioration of the water quality include the following:

  • As Dian Lake has aged, it has evolved to become a semi-enclosed lake, and its rate of flow has slowed down. This has caused a large quantity of pollutants to be deposited at the bottom of the lake.
  • Discharges from domestic and industrial sewage are the second reason. Studies show that domestic sewage has been the main source of pollution in recent years. The urbanized area of Kunming accounts for 5% of the drainage area of Dian Lake, but its output of pollutants amount to more than 50% of the pollution in the lake. The main sources of pollution are the fast growing  population and the increasing number of factories3.
  • The overdevelopment of coastal Dian Lake is the third reason. Tourism and industrial activities, as well as the daily activities of Kunming citizens, have seriously effected the Dian Lake ecosystem.  As a result of the exploitation of land resources, Dian Lake has lost its natural defenses; it therefore cannot fight against pollution from domestic wastewater, and other types of pollution.

In order to preserve the environment of Dian Lake, the Kunming city government enstated the “Dian Lake Protection Act” in 1998. The objective was to improve water quality and reduce pollution. This act was modified and re-enstated in 20134. According to the new terms, the government regulates the sewage discharge and also is responsible for setting up a special fund to administer the ecological compensation. The purpose is not only to reduce water pollution in Dian Lake, but also to restore its original natural appearance.

Water pollution is the accumulated damage to water resources over many decades. Generally, it takes at least 10 to 20 years for environmental management to show significant results. In addition, there is no precedent in history of a lake that is being polluted fully recovering. This means that  the management of lake water pollution is a difficult and complex project requiring a long period of time to be completed; it indicates that Kunming Dian Lake still has a long way to go.

 

  1. Dianchi jianjie 滇池简介, http://special.yunnan.cn/feature3/html/2011-05/23/content_1627042.htm, Retrieved May 6, 2013 []
  2. Ma Wei et al. (2007) Investigation on countermeasures for water environment management and water pollution prevention in Dianchi Lake, Journal of China institute of water resources and hydropower research. Vol. 5(1), pp. 8-14. []
  3. Wang Yuchao, Peng Yongan, Li Yimin (2004), The Characteristic of water pollution and engineering-oriented prevention on Dianchi, Areal research and development, Vol 23(1). pp88-91. []
  4. Guowuyuan guanyu dianchi liuyu shui wuran fangzhi “jiuwu” jihua ji 2010 nian guihua de pifu 国务院关于滇池流域水污染防治“九五”计划及2010年规划的批复, http://www.hflib.gov.cn/law/law/falvfagui2/JJF/FLFG/NL%20ZRZY%20HJBH/1160.htm, Retrieved May 6, 2013 []

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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Kunming – a strategic “bridgehead city” facing Southwest Asia

Kunming occupies a strategic position. It is the Chinese city which is nearest to several ASEAN countries (479 km from Vietnam, 789 km from Laos, and 858 km from Myanmar). Because of this geographical advantage, the Chinese government has put a great deal of effort into the construction of transportation networks connecting Kunming with its foreign neighbours.Kunming111

In 2011, the construction of the Trans-Asian Railway (with Kunming as a starting point) was officially begun. This is the first high-speed railway connecting China and Southeast Asia. Its four routes include the eastern line (from Kunming to Singapore), the mid-eastern line (from Nanning to Vientiane), the middle line (from Dali to Bangkok), and the western line (from Kunming to Yangon). This network also links up with railway lines in Burma and India. The terminal stations on these lines (Ho Chi Minh and Singapore on the eastern line, Bangkok on the middle line, and Yangon on the western line) are all international ports.  The economic impact of the railway will also boost the economy of the Indo-West Pacific area, and as a result, Kunming’s economic importance in Southeast Asia will increase.1.

In addition to the railway, all the highways in Yunnan connecting with South-East Asia start from Kunming. The Kunming-Bangkok Expressway, built jointly by the governments of Laos, Thailand and China, was open to traffic in 2012.2. The China-Vietnam highway (from Kunming to Hanoi) is expected to open in 2013. Other highways (from Kunming to Kyaukpyu, Myanmar and from Kunming to Ledo, India) are also in the planning stages.3

In 2010, with the launch of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area, China’s average tariff for ASEAN countries dropped significantly from 9.8% to 0.1%, and the commercial relationship between China and the ASEAN countries became closer. Because of the important position of Kunming, the Chinese government sees Kunming as a strategic “bridgehead city” facing Southwest Asia.

 

  1. Fan ya tielu zhi yi dongnanya zoulang 泛亚铁路之一「东南亚走廊」http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/daniel-ni/article?mid=729, last accessed 29 April 2013 []
  2. Kunming zhi mangu gonglu yixian quanmian guantong 昆明至曼谷公路一线全面贯通, Retrieved from http://www.moc.gov.cn/xinxilb/xxlb_fabu/fbpd_yunnan/201212/t20121214_1338955.html, last accessed 29 April 2013 []
  3. Zhongyue gaoss gonglu yuji 2013 nian guantong 中越高速公路预计2013年贯通, http://www.gxjtsjy.com/news.asp?ky=78&mid=80&id=358, , last accessed 29 April 2013. []

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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A basic understanding of Kunming city

Kunming-Green Lake, Ai Chi-HanKunming : location and weather

Kunming is located in the southwest of China and is the provincial capital of Yunnan province. The abbreviation of Kunming is “Kun”. Kunming is also known as the “city of eternal spring” because of its perpetual spring-like weather and its annual average temperature of 15 ° C (The average temperature of June is 19° C)1

Kunming’s Population

Kunming has a population of 7.26 million.  Its resident population is 6.43 million. 64% of its resident population lives in Kunming city and 36% in the rural areas of Kunming. As for the age distribution of the resident population, 15.5% of the members of this population are under 14, 72.41% are between 15 and 59, 12.09% are between 60 and 65 and 8.37% are more than 65 years old. The United Nations considers a society to be ageing when 10% of its population is over the age of 60. So, according to this standard, Kunming is an aging society2.

Immigrants : numbers and origins

There are 1.98 million immigrants in Kunming from other provinces or from other cites in Yunnan province. Most of the immigrants from other provinces hail from Sichuan, Guizhou, Chongqing, and Hunan. The other major influx comes from other cities in Yunnan province, including Qujing, Zhaotong, Chuxiong, and Honghe3.

The urbanisation rate in Kunming

In 1953, the urbansation rate in Kunming was about 9.06%. In 2010, it had reached 34.72%. However, compared to the overall rate in China, which is 49.68%, Kunming’s urbanisation rate is relatively low4.

The output value of primary to tertiary sector of Kunming

Kunming’s GDP reaKunming 產業ched 301.114 billion yuan in 2012. Primary sector: In 2012, the growth of the primary sector represented 15.916 billion yuan, with a growth rate of 6.4%. Secondary sector: In 2012, the growth of the secondary sector represented 137.848 billion yuan, with a growth rate of 16.1%. Tertiary sector: the growth of the tertiary sector represented 147.35 billion yuan, with a growth rate of 13.0%5.

 

In our next article, we are going to discuss Kunming’s importance in economics and communications in the eastern Asian area.

  1. Kunming luyou 昆明旅遊, Retrieved from http://www.yntrip.net/big5/yunnan/kunming/qihou.htm , last accessed 23 April 2013 []
  2. Kunming shi di liu ci quanguo renkou pucha zhuyao shuju gongbao昆明市第六次全国人口普查主要数据公报. Retrieved from http://yn.yunnan.cn/km/html/2011-05/26/content_1632518.htm , last accessed 23 April 2013 []
  3. Kunming shi di liu ci quanguo renkou pucha zhuyao shuju gongbao昆明市第六次全国人口普查主要数据公报. Retrieved from http://yn.yunnan.cn/km/html/2011-05/26/content_1632518.htm , last accessed 23 April 2013 []
  4. Cong liu ci renkou pucha kan yunnan renkou chengzhen hua fazhan zhuangkuang六次人口普查看云南人口城镇化发展状况Retrieved from http://www.yxstats.gov.cn/xxxs.aspx?id=2013031909584078 , last accessed 13 April 2013 []
  5. 昆明GDP突破3千亿大关 同比增长14.1% Kunming GDP tupo qian yi da guan tongbi zengzhang 14.1%. Retrieved from http://yn.xinhuanet.com/newscenter/2013-01/29/c_132135024.htm, , last accessed 23 April 2013 []

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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Land acquisition procedures and problems

In recent years, setting up development zones or science parks has become a popular method for governments to promote urbanization and regional development. In order to urbanize these development zones, the government must initiate the land acquisition process before implementing the subsequent zone development plan. The Hsinchu Science Park, established in 1980, is operated and managed by the National Science Council (NSC) in Taiwan. The land acquisition process for the Hsinchu Science Park was initiated by the development planning group, managed by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Education, and the NSC. This group is responsible for land acquisition, land development, and urban planning for the park.

The entrance of Hsinchu Science Park, Ai Chi-HanThe land for the Hsinchu Science Park was expropriated under the terms of Articles 1 and 3 of the Land Expropriation Act.  Article 1 states that “the purpose of this act is to regulate the expropriation of land, ensuring reasonable land use, safeguarding private properties and promoting public interest” According to Article 3, “the State may expropriate private land, according to what is strictly required by such an undertaking”. We found that both Articles 1 and 3 of the Land Expropriation Act provided a variety of reasons to expropriate land, thereby legally justifying the expropriation of land from citizens by the government.  In other words, expropriation by the Taiwanese government is grounded in the law, which represents a unilaterally administrative intention. Land ownership is ultimately in the hands of the government, which has the right to make the expropriation of private land compulsory1. This expropriation process requires no permission from the private land owner, and therefore, in China, conflicts arise involving not only the process of land acquisition, but also of land expropriation.

In a typical land acquisition process, the government first assesses the price of land and then applies to the relevant institutions for land acquisition. After the Expropriation Committee of the Ministry of the Interior sanctions the expropriation, the government posts the land expropriation notice and negotiates with the land owner. Once an agreement with the land owner is reached, the government will pay the compensation and apply for the registration of the ownership transfer. Finally, the government can proceed to the next stage and begin to use the land. The negotiation between the government and land owner is conducted under the terms of Article 11 of the Land Expropriation Act, which specifies that the government can negotiate with the land owner over the land purchase price. This negotiation process is similar to an ordinary commercial transaction. To reassure the land owners and prevent any resistance on their part, the government drafted Article 10 of the Equalization of Land Rights Act, which specifies that the land-owner’s compensation for expropriation should at the very least correspond to the listed market price. The government can increase compensation by as much as another 40% of the listed market price, if necessary.

The land expropriation process for the Hsinchu Science Park took place in three phases. During phases 1 and 2, the government moved the residents before demolishing the buildings and increased the land-owners’ compensation packages. Because land prices were still low at the time, the land expropriation process was successful.

However, during phase 3, the price of land was two to three times higher than during phases 1 and 2. (The sizes of the areas of land expropriated during phases 1 and 2 were 204 hectares and 169 hectares, respectively. However, the size of the area expropriated during phase 3 was 524 hectares). There was a span of 11 years between phase 1 and phase 3, and land prices rose during this period; the result was dissatisfaction on the part of the land owners regarding the expropriation prices for their land. Furthermore, because of the tract of land acquired during phase 3 was so extensive, part of it was located on the boundary between Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County, and the price estimations between these two areas differed. According to Yang, the estimation of land compensation was approximately NTD 12.5 million per acre for Hsinchu City and NTD 16 million for Hsinchu County2. The meagre compensation and differing estimations caused the land owners to protest violently, forcing the government to cancel the land expropriation planned for phase 3 . As a result, the Hsinchu Science Park today suffers from an insufficient amount of space3 .

A comparison of land expropriation processes in China and Taiwan shows that after the collective owners of rural land accept the compensation provided by the government, the government then holds an auction to sell the land to real estate developers. Therefore, discrepancies can be seen between the compensation and the auction price, which causes increasingly frequent protests on the part of the land-owners.  In the Hsinchu Science Park example, the government divided the land expropriation process into three phases over a long period of time, resulting in increasing land prices as well as increasing compensation requirements. Consequently, disputes and conflicts arose. Although Taiwan and China are respectively a democratic country and a communist country, similarities and differences in their land acquisition processes can be used as references for both parties.

  1. Xie mingrui謝明瑞, Tudi zhengshou tiaoli gai gaile – jian lun tudi zhengshou yu nongmin quanya土地徵收條例該改了-兼論土地徵收與農民權益, http://www.npf.org.tw/post/2/9463 , last accessed 26 March 2013. []
  2. Yang wenke 楊文科, Zhu ke tudi zhengshou shijian jilu biji, xinzhu 竹科土地徵收事件記錄筆記, Hsinchu, 1980. []
  3. Liao Jianrui廖健瑞, difang zhengzhi shengtai yu kexue yuanqu kaifa guanxi zhi yanjiu: Yi xinzhu shi weili地方政治生態與科學園區開發關係之研究: 以新竹市為例. Donghai daxue gonggong shiwu shuoshi lunwen東海大學公共事務碩士論文, 2002. []

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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UrbaChina Paris workshop

On December 20, 2012, an UrbaChina workshop was held in Paris. Every European academic member of the consortium was represented. Cristina Marcuzzo (European Commission) attended this meeting and highlighted the importance of the UrbaChina FP7 programme on the future of EU-China academic relations. This meeting was an opportunity for the participants to review the work and progress made so far.

From left to right: Hanna Ai (CNRS), Cristina Marcuzzo (EU commission), Stephan Feuchtwang (LSE), Jacqueline Nivard (EHESS), François Gipouloux (CNRS), Athar Hussain (LSE), Andrea Ricci (ISIS)

Each workpackage leader presented to the audience his or her first fieldtrip results and his or her observations about a particular topic on China’s urbanisation trends.

  • Prof. Gipouloux (CNRS) and Prof. Daniels (University of Birmingham) focused on the consequences of fiscal policies on urban design and service industries in Chinese cities.
  • Prof. Hussain (LSE) presented the audience with his latest results of studies on property rights in Chongqing.
  • After a presentation on urban planning, Prof. Bina (ICS) and Dr. Ricci (ISIS) focused on the predominance of economic growth as the main driving force behind urban policies in China.
  • Prof. Feuchtwang (LSE) pointed out the difficulties that municipalities face in building low cost housing.

Management and dissemination issues were also discussed during this workshop. Participants agreed to increased cooperation for fieldtrips. They also decided to start conducting surveys on improving syllabuses for urban studies in Chinese and European academic institutions.

The second international UrbaChina conference, including both European and Chinese institutions, will be held in Kunming, China on June 3-5, 2013.

「城镇化中国」项目于2012年12月20日在巴黎召开欧盟伙伴会议,席中每一位欧盟成员皆出席,欧盟委员会(European Commission)的Cristina Marcuzzo在会议中再次强调了欧盟第七架盟下: 「城镇化中国」项目中,欧盟与中国伙伴间合作交流关系的重要性。此次会议的目的,在于提供与会者交流并检讨过去项目计划的缺失与改进方法。

「城镇化中国」项目计划中的每位专题主持人,皆介绍了他们的调研成果与发现,也分享了他们对未来中国城镇化的看法 :

  • Gipouloux教授(法国国家科学研究院)与 Daniels教授(英国伯明翰大学)针对中国城市的税务政策与服务性产业发展提出看法。
  • Bina教授(萄葡牙里斯本大学)与 Ricci博士(罗马系统整合研究中心)在介绍城市规划现况后,认为经济增长是中国城市政策实施的主要动力。
  • Feuchtwang 教授 (伦敦政经学院)则针对城镇化中面对的困难提出看法,例如设立廉租房的议题等。
  • Hussain 教授(伦敦政经学院)则介绍了他对于重庆产权的最新研究成果。

会议中也针对「城镇化中国」项目研究成果的管理与未来传播管道进行讨论,与会成员皆赞同未来各专题间共同参与调研的可能。在项目计划专题6 (Workpackage 6)中,未来将对中国与欧洲学术机构在促成城镇化发展中,所开设的课程进行比较研究。

城镇化中国项目的国际年度会议将于6月3日至6月5日在云南大学召开,会议将邀请欧盟与中国项目伙伴出席,共同参与讨论。

Sebastien Goulard

Ph.D. in political science (EHESS, Paris); M.A. in social sciences (EHESS, Paris); M.A. in international relations (IRIS, Paris), B.A. (Hons) in international political studies (ESE - Nottingham Trent University)

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Land rolling development in Shanghai

Throughout the process of urban development in China, land development is important because the government must use land to obtain financial support and to subsequently improve urban infrastructures. In most places in China there exists a dual system of land ownership between the city and the rural areas: state-owned land and collectively-owned land. This means that land in the cities is owned by the state, and land in the rural and suburban areas is owned by collectives. Therefore, when urban development reaches a certain level, and more land is required, the government first appropriates the collectively-owned land in the rural area and converts it into state owned land to be used for urban construction. More precisely, the government appropriates the collectively-owned land in the rural area and compensates the owners before converting the land into state owned land. Subsequently, the government launches the process of primary land development, which involves investing in the land and developing it before contracting this new urban land to developers. This is commonly known as changing “raw land” into “cultivated land”.1

Primary land development includes land acquisition, land consolidation, and land reserve. Land reserve means that the ownership of land collected by the government is stored in the land reserve centre. These three processes must satisfy the requirements of the indicators for municipal underground infrastructures, as well as the requirements of urban planning, in order to carry out demolition, land levelling, and construction of public facilities in order to meet the land transfer standards. The executive bodies in primary land development are the local gov ernment, or the companies designated by the local government, such as urban investment companies and land reserve institutions. When the process of primary land development is completed, raw land is changed into cultivated land, which can be traded at the land transaction centre. The government holds auctions where developers can bid on land. Since 1994, the Tax Sharing System has been applied to local finances. Because of the Tax Sharing System, the local government cannot receive tax compensation from the central government. Therefore, the local government attempts to raise land prices through auctions to acquire higher land revenue. From the perspective of land developers, it is now possible for them to gain profits from the development of the acquired land. Likewise, the government can use the funds collected through land auctions to improve urban infrastructures.

If we look at the models of land development for the four development zones of Jinqiao, Lujiazui, Waigaoqiao, and Zhangjiang, we see that Shanghai is different from other cities in China. The Pudong New Area government, rather than the Shanghai city government, is in charge of these development zones. Because the Pudong New Area government is responsible for promoting investment and setting up infrastructures with limited financial resources, the government has designed a special model to finance and build the development zones. This land development model is called the “land rolling development model”.

First of all, the Pudong New Area government evaluates the price of rural collectively-owned land, and then pays 30% of the estimated price as the “land pre-acquisition costs” to the rural collectively-owned land owner to convert the land into state-owned land. “Land pre-acquisition costs” convert the land ownership and the land management. Then, the Shanghai Municipal Finance Bureau sets up the Development Zone Company. The fund provided to the company is equal to the estimated price of the rural collectively-owned land. When the Development Zone Company receives the fund, it purchases the development zone land from the Land Authority of Shanghai and signs the land use contract, thus acquiring the right to use the land. Next, the land ownership and the land management are transferred to the Development Zone Company. In this process, the flow of capital between the government and the Development Zone Company is counterbalanced. The land is transferred to the Development Zone Company without payment. In addition, the Development Zone Company may mortgage the land in order to receive loans to be used for the construction of the development zone. With the land loan, the Development Zone Company will need to pay only 70% of the property price to procure full ownership of the land and to develop it.2

 

The above graph plotted by Chi-Han Ai shows the difference between land development models of most cities in China and that of Shanghai. Please click to zoom in the graph.

This “land rolling development model” enables the Pudong New Area government to raise funds and complete the infrastructure of the development zone. However, this model has some underlying problems. For example, the government focuses on land and real estate development, but neglects industrial development. For the development of the industrial zone, the links between Industrial organizations are an important factor. However, the Chinese government still has room for improvement regarding industrial connections.

  1. Zhu Lingyi (2004) Fuxian zhong di difang fazhan xing guojia? Taibei nèi hu keji yuanqu yu shanghai zhangjianggao keje yuanqu de bijiao yanjiu 浮现中的地方发展型国家? 台北内湖科技园区与上海张江高科技园区的比较研究。Master thesis, National Taiwan University, Taipei. []
  2. Shanghai shi difangzhi bangongshi 上海市地方志办公室, Retrieved from http://www.shtong.gov.cn/node2/node2245/node64514/node64522/node64575/node64585/userobject1ai58313.html , last accessed 04 December 2012. []

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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The commodity circulation system in rural areas: a new method for urban development in China

In the process of urbanisation in China, most resources have been invested in cities, creating a scarcity of resources in rural areas. As a result, there is an ever widening gap between urban and rural economic levels.  Rural areas, agriculture, and farmers are three important issues that influence urban development in China.  These three issues are known as San nong wenti [三农问题]. The Chinese government stressed the importance of these matters in the “11th Five-Year Plan”.  From 2005, in order to help farmers sell their produce and to increase liquidities in rural areas, the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China successively proposed three plans to promote sales of produce. These policies are the following: Wan cun qian xiang shichang gongcheng [万村千乡市场工程; The Plan Connecting Ten Thousand Rural and City Markets], Shuang bai shichang gongcheng [双百市场工程; The Double 100 Market Plan], and Nong chao duijie [农超对接; The Plan Connecting Farmers and Businesses]

The Plan Connecting Ten Thousand Rural and City Markets” is a plan implemented in 2005. The main objective is to establish a link between agricultural markets in cities and rural areas and to advance the development of remote areas. Using government subsidies, an agricultural commodities network was established. This network extends from cities to rural areas, and is designed to encourage agricultural development and satisfy the needs of the farmers. In contrast, The Double 100 Market Plan” is a plan devised in 2006 to reform 100 large-scale agricultural wholesale markets and foster 100 large-scale businesses involved in the circulation of produce, in order to improve the rate of produce sales, as well as to encourage tighter links between cities and countryside through the circulation of produce. Finally, The Plan Connecting Farmers and Businesses” is a plan implemented in 2006. This plan promotes cooperation between farmers and businesses. With the help of the government, farmers can sign agreements with business operators to supply produce directly to supermarkets. In this way, a platform for the commercial transaction of produce has been set up to upgrade the agricultural industry.

Traditional market in Kunming, Gipouloux François

However, many problems remain in implementing these rural circulation systems. According to Guo Guoqing and Qian Minghui1, one of the main problems in the circulation of rural commodities is the regulatory issue. Because a mechanism regarding the regulation of commodities has not been established, fake and shoddy goods may enter rural areas.  This is detrimental not only to the development of the rural area, but also to the farmers’ quality of life. In addition, despite the government’s effort to set up the rural circulation system, many towns have not cooperated with the urban development plan. Therefore, the circulation paths for produce are often scattered and interrupted. A survey assessing the farmers’ preferences for the distribution of their produce indicated that 42.86% of the farmers preferred to sell their products to specific merchants and 35.71% of the farmers tended to transfer and sell their products independently. However, only 7.4% of the farmers chose to sell their products through the agreement with business operators. The results indicate that the circulation method for farmers’ produce has stalled. The farmers sell their produce independently and simply expect customers. No specialized circulation system or agricultural marketing network has been established or developed.

The establishment of the rural circulation system has, however, improved the circulation of population between the city and rural areas. The system can also assist urban development. The rural circulation system may be a solution that will help to resolve the serious problem of San nong wenti. However, at the present stage, the rural circulation system is immature, as we have seen. Therefore, to solve the problems it encounters, the Chinese government must continue to seek solutions.

  1. Guo Guoqing 郭国庆, Qian Minghui 钱明辉, « Woguo nongcun shangpin liutong de wenti yu duice 我国农村商品流通的问题与对策», Guojia xingzheng xueyuan xuebao 国家行政学院学报, 2007, Vol. 5, pp 18-28. []

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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Urban or rural household registration?

Article written by Miguel Elosua and Ai Chi-Han

The ratio of rural to urban population is an important indicator in evaluating the degree of urbanisation in a specific place. For more than two decades, Chinese cities have developed rapidly, increasing the ratio of urbanisation . The Chinese government implements an urban household registration system to control population flow. Under this system, which is known as the hukou [戶口] system, households are divided into “agricultural” and “non-agricultural”, based on the geographical location of the householder’s official residence and on his parents’ occupation. The transfer of household registration has traditionally been tightly restricted. As a result, people cannot transfer their household registration from an agricultural household to a non-agricultural household as they wish. The system has been justified by reasons such as the danger of losing arable land or the problem of overcrowded agglomerations in city suburbs.

However, during the last few decades of rapid economic growth, an increasing number of rural residents have moved to towns to work in manufacturing and services. These workers are commonly known as “migrant workers”. According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China’s “Survey Report of Migrant Workers”1 , there were more than 250 million migrant workers in 2011, accounting for nearly 20% of the total population of China.

Since migrant workers do not enjoy first-class citizen status, the question for many years has been whether rural laborers could obtain equal treatment as citizens. The landmark land reform passed by the Third Plenary Session of the 17th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party in October 2008, aims to gradually suppress the hukou system. As a result, many provinces have already issued measures to put an end to the distinction. The reform emphasizes the role of county-level urban cities in the process of integration of rural and urban areas. To give an illustration of this key role, schools are being closed in some villages so as to force farmers to send their children to schools in nearby cities – and eventually move there as a result. Of particular interest is the case of Chongqing, one of China’s largest cities in terms of population, which established the first rural land trading centre in 2008. The idea behind this centre is to allow farmers to trade their contracted land in exchange for stock shares, which in turn will give them dividends on a yearly basis. This income should ideally be used to rent or buy a house within the city.

More recently, in February 2012, the State Council issued the “Notification to Propel the Household Registration System Reform”2.  The purpose of this reform is to facilitate transfers from agricultural to non-agricultural household registration by helping migrant workers who have acquired steady employment to attain a legitimate and lawful residence in the city and enjoy the benefits of medical and social insurances.

Within the context of these policies, the willingness – or not – of migrant workers to be registered as non-agricultural households has become the main issue for the household registration system reform in China. The exchange is not, however, all that simple anymore. Getting a non-rural hukou is no longer a zero-sum game. As the urban-rural economic gap continues to widen, Chinese rulers have shifted the focus of development to the inland, introducing a number of measures to reduce this gap. These measures include  suppressing the millenary agricultural tax, traditionally known as the imperial tax or huang liang guo shui [皇粮国税],  increasing incentives for agricultural products, as well as  introducing a subsidized social security mechanism. In addition to this, farmers living in the city suburbs have entered into the expropriation game, and are increasingly reluctant to give up their rural hukou if there is a chance that their land might be absorbed by the city in the future. Finally, the world financial crisis has proved that owning land may well be a great advantage for laid-off migrant workers from coastal cities, who can always return home to work their land.

L'agriculteur à Huangshan, Ai Chi-Han

“Flowing without shifting registration” allows a migrant worker in the district of Huangshan to live with flexibility and freedom.

In the district of Huangshan, according to the “Bulletin Statistics of Economic and Social Development of the district of Huangshan”, the agricultural household population was 101,023 in 2011, whereas the non-agriculture household population was 26,868. This means that approximately 74% of the household population still holds a rural hukou. In addition, since one of the main entrances to the Huangshan Scenic Area is located within the district of Huangshan, a large proportion of residents work in the tourism industry, and the presence of migrant workers is obviously strongly felt.

In the course of the fieldwork carried out in this district, we randomly interviewed numerous local migrant workers on the pros and cons of having a rural hukou. Our conclusion was that the majority of them had little interest in giving up their agricultural household registration. The main reason given was that no special benefits were provided for citizens, and that losing farmer status would mean losing agricultural subsidies as well. Additionally, because no corresponding and supporting measures exist between the household registration system and the land system, applying for non agricultural household registration might result in the loss of their original farmland. In Huangshan, this is another obvious drawback, since workers frequently go back home, as the distance between the work place and the home town is usually quite short. In conclusion, migrant workers living in the Huangshan district seem to prefer working in town and simultaneously keeping their agricultural household registration. “Flowing without shifting registration” allows a migrant worker to live with flexibility and freedom.

Under the current household registration system in China, shifting from agricultural to non-agricultural household registration in small tourist towns such as Huangshan might be easy, but changing from non-agricultural to agricultural household registration is nearly impossible. The rural identity is an advantage, because migrant workers can work in town when they are young and return to the farmland when they grow old. In the case of Huangshan, the migrant workers’ reluctance to change their household registration seems contrary to the Chinese government’s attempts to open up non-agricultural household registrations with new regulations.

Although the ratio of rural to urban population may be an important indicator in determining the degree of urbanization in a specific place, the migrant workers’ reluctance to change their household registration shows that a number of reform strategies must be taken to increase urbanisation in some parts of China.

  1. Zhonghua renmin gongheguo guojia tongji ju 中華人民共和國國家統計局 (National bureau of statistics of China), 2012, 2011 Nian woguo nongmin gong diaocha jiance baogao 2011年我国农民工调查监测报告, Retrieved from http://www.stats.gov.cn/tjfx/fxbg/t20120427_402801903.htm, last accessed 19 November 2012. []
  2. Zhonghua renmin gongheguo zhongyang renmin zhengfu 中華人民共和國中央人民政府 (The central people’s government of the people’s republic of China) Guowuyuan bangong ting guanyu jiji wentuo tuijin huji guanli zhidu gaige de tongzhi 国务院办公厅关于积极稳妥推进户籍管理制度改革的通知,  Retrieved from http://www.gov.cn/zwgk/2012-02/23/content_2075082.htm, last accessed 19 November 2012. []

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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Ecological protection or industrial development? Huangshan city’s challenge

Huangshan city is a famous tourist site, featuring rich forest resources and beautiful scenic valley views that attract tourists from across the world. According to the statistics of the National Tourism Administration of the People’s Republic of China1 , the total number of tourists in 2011 was 30,543,900, providing the Huangshan city government with approximately 25.102 billion RMB in revenue linked to the tourist industry. This figure is rising at an average rate of 20% per year. However, if one compares the scenic area of Huangshan to the total city area, the Huangshan scenic area represents only 12% of the whole (the total Hunagshang city area is approximately 9,807 km² and the scenic area is 1,200  km²), which means that a large area of Huangshan city is not a scenic tourist spot. In addition, the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of Huangshan city was ranked 15th among 16 prefecture-level cities in Anhui Province and amounted to only 10% of the GDP of Hefei city (the GDP for Huangshan city was 37,881 RMB and the GDP for Hefei city was 363,662 RMB). It is therefore clear that Huangshan city must improve its economic output through non-tourist industries.

In 2003, the Huangshan city government proposed “Advice for the Implementation of Industrial and Economic Development,” which indicated that Huangshan city should focus on the development of tourism with the support of industrial development. As a result of industrial development, eight industrial zones are now located in Huangshan city, including the Yixian County Industrial Park (黟县工业园区), the Xiuning Economic Development Zone (休宁经济开发区), and the Huizhou District Economic Park(徽州区经济园). However, the problem of how to protect natural resources and develop industry simultaneously is a challenge for the government of a tourist site such as Huangshan city.

According to the statistics provided by the Huangshan government2 , during the eleventh five-year plan (2006-2010), the total industrial value of Huangshan city increased by approximately 31.7 billion RMB, with an average growth rate of 29.3%. Most industries in Huangshan are in the sectors of electronic information, knitted garments, and the bio-medical industry, with high added value, low pollution, and low emissions. To help integrate tourism and industry, the industrial zones actively produce tourist commodities, such as travel souvenirs and travel supplies, thus complying with the demand of the tourist market. Moreover, the government strictly prohibits high-polluting industries from setting up in Huangshan. According to the Bulletin of environmental quality in Huangshan city3 the current air conditions, quality of drinking water, and noise levels in Huangshan are all satisfactory. However, compared to other prefecture-level cities in Anhui Province, Huangshan city is still at a lower level of development, and is classified as the city with the lowest industrial development in Anhui, which enables Huangshan city to maintain good quality standards for the overall environment. If we compare these results with Hefei, the city with the highest GDP in Anhui, we see that Hefei city’s air quality is judged to be slightly polluted, and the water from Chaohu Lake described as moderately polluted.

Dianchi Lake, François Gipouloux

The water of Dianchi Lake is still undrinkable.

Another example is Kunming city, which is also a city under observation by the Urbachina program. After 1970, the industrial zones and farmland areas around Kunming evacuated waste water into Dianchi Lake, resulting in a significant growth of cyanobacteria and serious eutrophication in Dianchi Lake. Although the Kunming city government has been actively trying to solve the problem of pollution in Dianchi Lake, in order to significantly improve water quality, the lake is still at a pollution level far below the level of drinkable water. Huangshan city, on the other hand, is home to Taiping Lake, which is the largest reservoir in Anhui and possesses good water quality. However, finding a way to actively promote the industrial zones while also protecting the natural ecological environment will be a challenge that the Huangshan city government and other local governments in China will need to deal with.

 

  1. Zhonghua renmin gongheguo guojia luyou ju 中华人民共和国国家旅游局 (National tourism administration of the people’s republic of china), 2012, Huangshan shi 2012 nian lizheng wancheng jiedai rujing youke 160 wan renci 黄山市2012年力争完成接待入境游客160万人次, Retrieved from http://www.cnta.gov.cn/html/2012-2/2012-2-9-14-48-89289.html , last accessed 13 November 2012. []
  2. Huangshan shi renmin zhengfu xinxi gongkai wang黄山市人民政府信息公开网, 2012, Huangshan shi “shierwu” gongye fazhan guihua黄山市“十二五”工业发展规划, Retrieved from http://zw.huangshan.gov.cn/Index/TitleView.aspx?ClassCode=0802&UnitCode=JA003&Id=113391, last accessed 13 November 2012 []
  3. Huangshan shi huanjing baohu ju黄山市环境保护局, 2012, Er ling yiyi nian huangshan shi huanjing zhi liang gongbao 二〇一一年黄山市环境质量公报, , Retrieved from http://www.hsepb.gov.cn/readnews.asp?NewsID=9009, last accessed 13 November 2012 []

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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Preliminary study of urban development in Kunming

Zhao long 赵龙, Li min 李敏, « Kunming chengzhen hua jianshe de chutan 昆明市全局城镇化建设的初探», 2009-2010 Kunming shi shehui kexueyuan chengguo xuanji , 2009-2010 昆明市社会科学院成果选集. Publishers: Dajia zazhi she大家杂志社, 2011.

One of the authors who collaborated in writing this article works for the Kunming authorities. In the article, the authors first mention the problems of urban development encountered in Kunming and then propose solutions that might be feasible. Finally, they indicate the objectives of urban development in Kunming, for 2015 and 2020 respectively.

Kunming city covers about 249 square kilometers, with an approximate population of 3 million and a current urbanisation rate of 61%. Several problems have occurred throughout the process of the urban development in Kunming; for example, a weak radial expansion of the dominant cities to the peripheral cities, inefficient urban planning and a lack of urban infrastructures. In addition, the existence of 366 “urban villages” has made Kunming’s urbanization process even more difficult.

 The “urban village” is a unique phenomenon that occurs during the  process of urban development in China. It is caused by a city’s rapid expansion, which causes the rural villages originally situated at the edge of the city to be surrounded by high-rise buildings. Geographically, this area belongs to the city, but the farmer’s rural household registration status cannot be transferred to an urban household status. As there is no unified urban planning and management for these urban villages, the environment is always dirty, with overcrowded housing and incomplete infrastructures. In view of all these factors, the authors of this article present the methods employed at present by the Kunming administration to improve urban development.

Poor people in Kunming, Ai Chi-Han

In the development of urbanisation in Kunming, the government is facing the challenge to improve the poor dwelling environment.

Taking into account the specific situation of each of the 1500 communities and 9600 natural villages in Kunming, the government decides whether a village is to be maintained, demolished, moved, or merged with others, in an attempt to improve the housing quality and solve the problems of urban villages. By the end of 2010, planning for 130 of the urban villages had been completed.

Regarding the problem of urban family registration, the author suggests that the government should loosen the restrictions on changes in household registration and allow the migrant farmers and students from rural households to register as urban residents. The government should also try to eliminate the difference between urban and rural household registration as soon as possible, thus allowing for a systematic transfer of the rural population to the urban.

The Kunming administration’s aim is to at attain an urbanisation rate of 70% and to bring about an improvement in the matter of urban villages and infrastructure by 2015. The urbanisation rate is expected to reach 80% by 2020, boosting the economy of Kunming and the development of adjacent cities.

 This article is avalaible on CNKI

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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Dynamic social network analysis on inter-city scientific collaboration in Yangtze river delta

Hu xiaohui 胡晓辉, Du Debin 杜德斌, « Zhang sanjiao chengshi jian kexue hezuo de shehui wangluo dongtai fenxi 长三角城市间科学合作的社会网络动态分析 », Keji yu jinqi, 2012, Vol. 25, N°1 , p. 13-17.

This paper introduced the social network analysis approach to investigate inter-city scientific collaboration between sixteen cities in Yangtze River Delta from 1991 to 2010. We examined the network structure and its developmental mechanism by estimating network density, centrality, average path length and clustering coefficient, to examine the dynamic characteristics of social network development in both microcosmic and macrocosmic perspectives. The conclusions showed that, although the scientific collaboration network has been basically established, the networking process presents significantly spatial unevenness. The driving function of the whole network tends to shift on middle-small cities, but the growing“core-periphery”structure dominated by Shanghai and Nanjing would hinder the further development of scientific collaboration network for a long time.

Other articles written by Du Debin in 2012

  • Du Debin 杜德斌, Fan Fei 范斐, Mayahua 马亚华, « Nanhai zhuquan zhengduan di zhanlue taishi ji zhongguo de yingdui fanglue 南海主权争端的战略态势及中国的应对方略 » (Territorial disputes in the South China Sea and China’s strategies), Shijie dili yanjiu, Vol. 21, N°2, p. 1-17.
  • Hu Xiaohui 胡晓辉, Du Debin 杜德斌, « Chengshi keji jingzheng li de shengtai wei pingjia yanjiu – yi zhejiang sheng 11 shi wei li 城市科技竞争力的生态位评价研究——以浙江省11市为例 » ( The Niche evaluation on urban Science and technology competitiveness—A case study of cities in Zhejiang province), Keji jinbu yu duice , Vol. 26, N°12, p. 36-40.
  • Huang Liang 黄亮, Du Debin 杜德斌, Wang Baoping 王宝平 , « Quanqiu chanye yanfa de zhuyao tezheng yu fazhan qushi – jiyu quanqiu yanfā 1000 qiang qiye de fenxi 全球产业研发的主要特征与发展趋势——基于全球研发1000强企业的分析 » (The study on the main features and trends of global industrial R&D activities—Base on the analysis of the Global Top 1000 Enterprises in R&D Investment) , Keji jinbu yu duice , Vol. 29, N°9, p. 54-57.

The full text of all the articles are available on the CNKI.

Chi-Han Ai

Ph.D. candidate of EHESS ( École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Paris) focusing on regional economic development in China and Taiwan.

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