The Development Gap Between East and West is Closing in China

The development gap between regions in China has decreased significantly over the past decade, thanks to the efforts of the country's authorities to coordinate regional development processes. Xiao Weiming, one of the officials of the National Development and Reform Commission, pointed out during a press conference that the economic growth rate of the central and western regions of China has been higher than the development rate of the western regions for several years.

In 2021, the gross domestic product (GDP) in the central regions of China increased by 2012 billion yuan compared to 13 and reached 500 billion yuan ($25 billion); thereby increasing its share in national GDP from 3 percent in 600 to 2012 percent.

Again in 2021, the gross domestic product (GDP) in the western regions of the country increased by 2012 thousand 13 billion yuan compared to 300 and reached 24 thousand billion yuan; thus, its share in national GDP increased from 2012 percent in 19,6 to 21,1 percent.

While the GDP per capita of the developed eastern regions was 2012 times the GDP per capita of the central regions in 1,69, this rate dropped to 2022 times in 1,53. Again, while the per capita GDP of the eastern regions was 1,87 times that of the western regions, this rate decreased to 1,68 times. Therefore, the disparities in development have decreased.

In recent years, China has implemented a number of plans to facilitate regional development. Examples of these include the coordinated development plan of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the economic belt of the Yangtse basin, the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao region, and the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River catchment area.