Why the Yangtze River Delta is one step ahead, [Shanghai Week] A new starting point

The annual Yangtze River Delta regional leaders' symposium and Yangtze River Delta integrated development high-level forum, as well as the Yangtze River Delta regional ecological environment protection coordination group's fourth working meeting, were held in Zhejiang last week. This is the sixth high-level "summit" after the Yangtze River Delta integration was elevated to a national strategy, and the integration now has a new context and expectations.

At the end of November last year, General Secretary Xi Jinping hosted a symposium in Shanghai on deepening the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta, stressing the need to promote new major breakthroughs in the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta, to take the lead in Chinese-style modernization, and to better play the role of pioneering, leading, demonstrating, and radiating power.

The Yangtze River Delta region should fully, accurately and comprehensively implement the new development concept, focus on the two key words of "integration" and "high quality", establish a global vision and strategic thinking, unswervingly deepen reform and expand high-level opening up, coordinate scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation, coordinate leading role and the strengths of each, coordinate hardware connectivity and mechanism coordination, coordinate ecological protection and economic development, take the lead in promoting common prosperity, and actively explore in building a modern civilization for the Chinese nation.

The purpose of this symposium of the main leaders of the Yangtze River Delta region is to refine and implement the spirit of the above-mentioned important speech and strengthen the new responsibilities and actions of the Yangtze River Delta in its new journey.

With the theme of "Writing a new chapter of the integration of the Yangtze River Delta and becoming a pioneer of Chinese-style modernization", the symposium comprehensively summarized the work achievements since the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta was elevated to a national strategy, especially in the past year, and deeply analyzed the new mission and new tasks of promoting the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta under the new situation.

The three provinces and one city reviewed and approved in principle the "Three-Year Action Plan for Integrated Development of the Yangtze River Delta Region" and the "Implementation Plan for Strengthening the Functions of the Yangtze River Delta Regional Cooperation Office". They focused on strengthening cross-regional coordination of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation, accelerating the improvement of integrated development systems and mechanisms, actively promoting high-level coordinated opening up, strengthening joint protection and governance of the ecological environment, focusing on improving safe development capabilities, and taking the lead in exploring the modern civilization of the Chinese nation. In-depth discussions were carried out, and a number of major issues for continuously and in-depth promotion of high-quality integrated development in the Yangtze River Delta were clarified.

At the Yangtze River Delta Integrated Development High-level Forum held during the meeting, Shanghai Municipal Party Committee Secretary Chen Jining pointed out in his speech that we must thoroughly study and implement the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech, keep in mind the "big things of the country", focus on the two key words of "integration" and "high quality", and always be consistent and firmly in the forefront. We must actively take on responsibilities, strengthen overall coordination, be determined to deepen reforms, strive to achieve new breakthroughs, promote the continuous deepening and solidification of integrated development, better enhance the overall competitiveness of regional development, and better demonstrate the superiority of my country's socialist system.

The Yangtze River Delta has always been regarded as the "leader" of China's economy, and Shanghai is the "leader" of the integration of the Yangtze River Delta. In the new context of Chinese-style modernization, to play the role of "leader", it is necessary not only to contribute to the economic scale, but also to create a comprehensive model of innovation, development and governance.

At the symposium on deepening the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta held last year, General Secretary Xi Jinping conducted in-depth analysis and discussion with the comrades present, and mentioned that there are many deep-seated problems in the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta that need to be further solved, including the need to improve the quality, efficiency and radiation driving role of development, the need to work harder on the integration of key areas and key regions, the need to improve the level of division of labor and cooperation in the industrial chain and supply chain, the need to further play the leading role of establishing a unified national market, the need to further deepen reform and opening up, and the need for many shortcomings in the governance and development of megacities and super-megacities.

During the meeting last week, the three provinces and one city jointly released the list of practical projects for the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta in 2024, unveiled the establishment of the Yangtze River Delta "Belt and Road" High-quality Development Promotion Association, and the first batch of Yangtze River Delta Innovation Consortium; and signed a number of cooperation framework agreements on the establishment of the Yangtze River Delta Rail Transit Operation Company, regional logistics quality improvement, efficiency enhancement and cost reduction, high-quality development of talent work, financial cooperation, basic research cooperation, regional public security traffic management and police collaboration, market supervision services, construction of a national unified large market pilot zone, peak summer electricity mutual assistance, shipping and trade digitalization, AI scenario joint innovation strategy, etc.

These collaborations, covering infrastructure, collaborative innovation, cultivation of new productivity, cross-regional governance and other aspects, are solutions to deep-seated problems. The above efforts are also a concrete manifestation of the Yangtze River Delta's role as a "pioneering" region.

Among them, institutional innovation is the key to the key.

The symposium of the main leaders of the Yangtze River Delta region pointed out that it is necessary to focus on the institutional guarantee of integrated development and accelerate the improvement of the system and mechanism of integrated development. Better play the role of the "experimental field" of reform, coordinate the implementation of major policies and measures, promote the convenient sharing of public services in a classified manner, improve the level of infrastructure interconnection, deepen the construction of the Yangtze River Delta ecological green integrated development demonstration zone, promote the joint construction and sharing of key areas, and improve the unity of policy formulation, consistency of rules, and coordination of implementation.

At the meeting of the Yangtze River Delta Regional Ecological and Environmental Protection Cooperation Group, Chen Jining, as the leader of the cooperation group, pointed out that it is necessary to continuously innovate the system and mechanism of joint protection and joint governance with a reform approach, follow the natural laws of the ecological environment, improve the planning coordination mechanism, strengthen the joint law enforcement mechanism, and build a pollution risk early warning and joint control mechanism to enhance the systematic, holistic and coordinated nature of governance.

The same is true for other key areas. Chen Jining said at the high-level forum that we should focus on deepening reform and expanding opening up, and give full play to the role of experimental fields. Shanghai will take the national strategy as the guide, take the construction of "five centers" as the important mission, take digitalization, intelligence and greening as the direction, vigorously promote pioneering reforms and leading opening up, work with Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui to strengthen mutual learning and replication of reform experience, promote the cross-regional flow and allocation of market factors, implement the free trade pilot zone enhancement strategy, and better serve enterprises to go global and develop.

At the same time, we will focus on hardware connectivity and mechanism coordination, lay a solid foundation for co-construction and sharing, work together with Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui to accelerate the construction of the Yangtze River Delta on track, amplify the same-city effect of urban agglomerations, deepen the convenient sharing of public services, and continuously improve the people's sense of gain, happiness and security.

As the cultivation and development of new quality productivity has become a key task throughout the country, the Yangtze River Delta has the responsibility and conditions to explore and create a model in this regard. This involves a series of reform explorations such as basic research, achievement transformation, and industrial chain co-construction.

Chen Jining stated at the high-level forum that Shanghai will focus on scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation, accelerate the development of new quality productivity, strengthen the systematic construction of the innovation pattern, strengthen strategic scientific and technological forces, build a pilot zone for basic research, accelerate the research and development of key core technologies, promote the cultivation and development of leading industries, the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, and the germination and growth of future industries. It will work with Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui to strengthen interdisciplinary and cross-basic research, innovate the system and mechanism for joint scientific and technological research, and jointly build a world-class high-end industrial cluster.

The meeting of the Yangtze River Delta Regional Ecological and Environmental Protection Cooperation Group proposed that the scientific level of regional ecological and environmental governance should be continuously improved with the power of technology. In a transformational way, we should jointly cultivate green, low-carbon, new quality productivity and strive to build new green development advantages. We should strengthen planning docking, promote integrated layout, jointly build a new energy system, and create a green, low-carbon supply chain.

In addition, the Yangtze River Delta is also expected to stimulate endogenous motivation through market-oriented means. All participants reached a consensus that the Yangtze River Delta should take the lead in innovating ways to realize the value of ecological products, improve the basic systems for the operation and management of the carbon market, improve the ecological compensation mechanism for the entire region, accelerate the deepening and expansion of cross-regional industrial cooperation, promote the industrialization of ecology and the ecology of industry, and better transform ecological advantages into development advantages.

At a symposium with major leaders of the Yangtze River Delta region, it was made clear that the Yangtze River Delta will work together to build a high-level open platform, jointly optimize the development environment of the private economy, promote the integrated development of the regional market, and create new advantages in international competition and cooperation.

The deepening of integration tasks in various fields is inseparable from deeper and more systematic reforms - comprehensively deepening reforms and promoting institutional innovation are the essence of "integration" itself.

Integration at a new starting point obviously requires more resolute breaking down of various tangible and intangible barriers, and strengthening coordination and cooperation between regions and departments, so as to form a true development community and governance community.