July 9, 2007 -- Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, presided over the One Hundredth and Eighty Second Conference of the State Department held on June 27 which focused on the General Urban-Rural Plan for Chongqing for the 2007-2020 term.

Highlighting the cultural and economic importance of Chongqing, Prime Minister Wen said that the region's economic climate had changed since the implementation of the ongoing Three Gorges Project and stressed the need to continue to focus efforts on a strategy of sustainable development for Chongqing.

Chongqing is one of four Chinese cities administered directly by the Central Government, along with Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin. It has the largest area and population among these municipalities, with a total area of 82,400 square kilometers.

"The central government has confirmed that Chongqing is a new developing power in southwest China. It means that Chongqing should gain ground through self-reliance, driving the development of the adjacent areas," said Pu Yongjian, vice director of Economics and Business Administration at Chongqing University in a statement to Xinhua.

Pu went on to add that the central government planned to encourage multinational companies and domestic manufacturing groups to move into Chongqing and take advantage of the abundant land and human resources to further develop the local manufacturing sector. Promotion of this sector is expected to result in new employment opportunities thus eliminating the problem of immigration to urban areas.

Pu also indicated that the new General Urban-Rural Plan will provide for the development of Chongqing's infrastructure which in its present state compares unfavorably with other parts of China.

"Urban areas of Chongqing are well developed, but surrounding areas are less so," a general manager of a foreign company in Chongqing, told Emerging China, who did not want to give his name since he was not authorized to comment on regulatory issues. He added that the conference empowered the Chongqing government to exercise greater control in the setting and implementation of policies.

"This is really good news for us," he said. "The Chongqing government now has the potential to drive whole urban-rural areas. I think we shall get benefits from the conference in the future. For instance, there were no air companies in Chongqing before, but this year we have got two air companies here, Chongqing Air and West Air."