At the turn of centuries, as new changes take place in world politics and economy, the economic and social development of our country has entered into a new phase. From the point of view of the overall situation of our socialist modernization, it is necessary to highlight and put forward the Western Region Development Program and promote the development of the western and central regions as a major strategic task, with a view to coordinate regional development and stride forward to the great renaissance of the Chinese nation in the 21st century. The implementation of the Western Region Development Program is an important move to carry out Comrade Deng Xiaoping's strategic thinking of "two great situations", eliminate regional disparities gradually, consolidate the unity of ethnic groups, ensure boarder safety and social stability and promote social progress. The Program is demanded by an urgent need to restructure regional economy, bring into play regional comparative advantages, advance the layout of productive forces and improve the overall efficiency and level of the national economy. The Program is also an important measure to stimulate domestic demand, expand market space, maintain sustained, rapid and healthy development of the national economy and realize strategic targets of the third step of the modernization drive. Therefore, the implementation of the Western Region Development Program has important economic and political bearing.

On the basis of comprehensive consideration of the different economic development levels, geographic locations and the development of ethnic minority regions, the Western Region Development Program shall cover Chongqing Municipality, Sichuan Province, Guizhou Province, Yunnan Province, Tibet Autonomous Region, Shaanxi Province, Gansu Province, Qinghai Province, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (these areas hereafter abbreviated as the Western Region). In the past five decades after the founding of the People's Republic of China, especially in the past two decades following the Reform and Opening-up policy, the Western Region has undergone fundamental social and economic changes, with development pace accelerated, the industrial basis reinforced, and economic reform pushed forward continuously. The Western Region is now basically opened up to the outside world on all fronts. Since the implementation of the Ninth Five-Year Plan, the Central Government has intensified its support to the development of the western and central regions, and basic industries and industries with competitive edge in the Western Region such as agriculture, energy, communications and raw materials etc. have been further strengthened. The reform and development of the Western Region has created favorable conditions for further development. With the growth of our country's all-round strength, the Central Government is now capable of rendering more support to the development of the Western Region. With basically mature conditions, it is the time to launch the Western Region Development Program.
The Western Region enjoys the following advantages for development. First, the Western Region covers a vast area, holds an enormous reserves of such energy and mineral resources as hydropower, oil, natural gas, coal, rare earth mineral, potassium, phosphor, and non-ferrous metal, and has good sunlight and thermal conditions, diverse biological resources and rich cultural and tourist resources. Second, the Western Region possesses great market potential, low-cost labor resource and thus comparative advantages for developing labor-intensive industries. Third, the Western Region borders on more than a dozen countries and regions. As an important passage to Eurasian countries, it has geographic advantages for developing economic cooperation and trade with neighboring countries and regions. Fourth, in the Western Region traditional industrial bases, national defense enterprises, research institutions and higher-learning institutions built up over a long period of time have gathered a mass of professionals, and the Western Region is therefore in a preliminary position to carry out industrial development and vertical association. However, with natural, historical, cultural, policy and institutional constraints, the Western Region still lags behind the eastern region by a significant margin in term of economic and social development. Main differences lie in backward infrastructure, insufficient water conservancy facilities, insubstantial road networks, underdeveloped power grids and lower coverage of telecommunications services, worsening eco-system and environment, vast areas of desertification and severe soil erosion, inappropriate industrial structure, inferior conditions for agricultural production, underdevelopment of industries and services, inflexible enterprise management, low-level adoption of market principles and urbanization, insufficient opening-up to the outside world, underdevelopment of science and education, larger number of difficulties associated with poverty-stricken areas, remote and boarder regions, Ethnic Minority Regions and traditional industrial bases, and underdeveloped social welfare. The Western Region Development Program is therefore a long-term and arduous task.

I. Guiding principles and strategic goals for implementing the Western Region Development Program

In the new century, fundamental changes in domestic and foreign environments have brought fresh challenges and opportunities to the Western Region. With accelerated globalization, rapid development of science and technology in the world, positive progress of domestic economic restructuring and China's accession to the WTO, the Western Region is now confronted with unprecedented open economic environment and opportunities of technology transfer as well as more intensive market and it's element competition. To promote the development of the Western Region under new circumstances, we should advance with the times, follow the requirements of "Three Represents", push further economic restructuring and fundamental reform of economic growth modes, explore new paths of reform, opening-up and accelerating development, adopt new methods for structural readjustment and scientific and technological advance, foster new mechanisms for the movement of market forces and macro-economic management, enhance the macro-economic, strategic and policy aspects of planning and identify the goals, guidelines and tasks of the Western Region Development Program.

1. Guiding principles for the Western Region Development Program
In the development of the Western Region, we should proceed upon reality, press forward aggressively, act within the limit of our capacities and resources, and be well prepared for chronic hard work. We should conduct overall planning by taking all factors in consideration on the basis of scientific reasoning, work in accordance with objective laws, and carry out priority tasks of development earnestly. We should highlight priorities, do things step-by-step, focus on key issues and major problems, and concentrate resources to solve problems that have a bearing on the overall situation. We should deepen reform and expand opening up, rely on institutional and technological innovation and push forward the Western Region Development Program effectively.

In the implementation of the Western Region Development Program, efforts should be made to deal with the following relationships:

(1) Combine the solution of existing problems with the fulfillment of long-term goals. Confronted with existing problems, we should start with resolving major ones such as underdeveloped infrastructure, degradation of the eco-system, underdevelopment of science, technology and education and inappropriate industrial structure, and proceed in an efficient and orderly manner. Efforts should be made to attain substantial achievements in the development of the Western Region in the short-term and thus lay a good foundation for the all-round invigoration of the economy in the Western Region.

(2) Combine the emphasis on development priorities with the promotion of all-round development. Priorities should be given to infrastructure construction, ecological improvement and the development of economy with local characteristics, science, technology and education. More efforts should be made to strengthen development and implement key projects that have a significant bearing on the overall development of the Western Region and can facilitate all-round economic and social development in the Region. The development should start with major cities with excellent conditions and regions with convenient traffic, and the accelerated development of these cities and regions can stimulate the development of surrounding areas and rural areas in the vicinity.

(3) Combine the role of market forces with the strengthening of macro-economic management. On the one hand, efforts should be made to bring into full play the role of market in allocating resources, deepen economic restructuring, expand opening up to the outside world as well as the domestic market, and promote development with reform and opening up. On the other hand, the government's role of macro-economic regulation should be made to give a fully play of priority support to the Western Region and create favorable institutional and policy framework for its development.

(4) Combine the increase of economic benefits with the emphasis on social benefits. On the basis of local comparative advantages, good investment projects should be selected to meet market needs, and economy with local characteristics and industries with competitive edge should be developed actively with emphasis on economic efficiency. Moreover, special circumstances of the Western Region should be taken into consideration with focus on social and ecological benefits, and ecological improvement and environmental protection should be promoted to provide ecological safety net for the Western Region and the whole country at large and achieve sustainable development, highlighting the rational utilization, saving and protection of resources.

(5) Combine the acceleration of economic growth with the promotion of social advance. More capital should be invested to lay a solid foundation for industrial development so that opportunities can be seized and development sped up. Active efforts should be made to disseminate advanced practical technologies, promote the integration of technology and economy and attain the leap-forward of productivity. Besides, great efforts should also be made to improve education of all kinds, tap human resource, develop culture, health and sports, and upgrade the all-round quality of laborers. Rule of law and moral standards should be promoted to facilitate coordinated economic and social development and concurrent progress of material civilization, culture and ethnics.

(6) Combine the support rendered by the Central Government and all walks of life with the self-reliance and hard work of the Western Region. The Central Government will provide priority policy support to the Western Region in its development, encourage the coastal regions and all social sectors to participate in the Western Region Development Program, and introduce domestic and foreign capital, technology and human resource to the Western Region. At the same time, the Western Region should spare no effort to push forward the development campaign in the spirit of Yugong, who, according to legends, removed two mountains with persistent work. The Western Region should be more aggressive, active and innovative in its development campaign, and by relying on its own resources, gradually put in place a benign mechanism of self-development, improving its economic dynamism and competitiveness in the market.

(7) Combine the Western Region Development Program with the development of the central and eastern regions. All policy measures pertaining to the Western Region Development Program should be implemented in accordance with the general requirements of the nationwide reform and actual circumstances of the Western Region. Besides, the eastern region should play a more active role in pulling forward the development of the western and central region; the central region should make a full play of its geographic advantage of connecting the western and eastern regions. Regional economic cooperation should be promoted to bring to full play the comparative advantage of each region for mutual benefits and coordinated economic development among regions.

2. Strategic goal of the Western Region Development Program

The Western Region Development Program is a colossal systematic campaign. Its overarching strategic goal is as follows: Through the hard work of several generations, by the middle of 21st century when modernization is basically attained nationwide, the regional disparities between the Western Region and other regions should be diminished considerably, the relative underdevelopment of the Western Region should be reversed, transforming it into a prosperous and advanced new West where life is stable, ethnic groups are united and the landscape is beautiful.
The next five to ten years will be a crucial period in the implementation of the Western Region Development Program. We should push forward the development campaign step by step with focus on priority tasks to achieve breakthroughs in infrastructure construction, ecological improvement, substantial progress in science and technology, economy with local characteristics, and industries with competitive edge, arrive at a new phase of reform and opening up, further improve people's living standard, and to lay a solid foundation for further development of the Western Region. During the Tenth Five-Year Plan period, the main targets of the Western Region Development Program are as follows:

(1)To substantially improve the underdeveloped infrastructure and start or complete the construction of key infrastructure projects in such sectors as water conservancy, communications, energy and telecommunications etc.

(2) To carry out all-round ecological and environmental improvement in the upper reach of the Yangtze River, the Three Gorges, the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River, the Hei River basin and the Tarim River basin, basically contain the environmental degradation in key areas and make significant progress in the combat against pollution.

(3) To greatly improve the market competitiveness of agricultural and sideline products with competitive edge, mineral products and tourism, achieve substantial progress in the upgrading of traditional industries, industrial restructuring and in the development of hi-tech industries with competitive edge, and greatly improve the quality of economic growth and economic efficiency.

(4) To universally apply advanced practical technologies to key areas of development, build up the capacity of scientific and technological innovation, make the Nine-Year Compulsory Education universally available, improve the quality of human resource, expand the team of talented professionals and greatly improve such public utilities as cultural services and healthcare in urban areas.

(5) To greatly improve urban infrastructure in municipalities directly under the Central Government and capital cities of provinces and autonomous regions, make considerable progress in the construction of medium and small cities and towns, improve urban environment and noticeably raise the proportion of urban population.

(6) To put in place the modern corporate system of large and medium SOEs, greatly increase the proportion of the output value and assets of non-public enterprises, and also the Western Region's proportion of foreign capital utilization and foreign trade in the national totals.

(7) To reduce rural poverty, ensure that rural people have enough food and clothing and lead relatively comfortable life, lower the natural growth rate of population significantly and basically contain the scale-up of income disparities between the Western Region and other regions.