In the "National Urban System Planning"composed by Construction Ministry of urban and rural areas, Chongqing was upgraded to be one of the five center cities in China for the first time. This was learned by the reporter from the city planning and construction management and civil defense work conference held yesterday. It was reported that this upgrading will play a great significance in Chongqings spatial and economic development.

It is informed that, in addition to Chongqing, there are Shanghai city in eastern China, Beijing in the northern region, Tianjin in the Bohai Sea area, and Guangzhou in Pearl River Delta region.

What is National Center City?

The so-called National Center City is the city that has to lead, radiation, distribution function for the country, this function is performed in the political, economic, and cultural aspects. In 2005, when the Ministry of Construction composed the national urban system planning under the "City Planning Law", they put forward the concept of the national center cities.

Why to be among the top five national center cities

 “In the process of practicing national reform and opening and policy tests, roughly we experienced the advance of the process from south to north, from the coast to the inland ",said LI Xiaojiang , Dean in the Academy of China Urban Planning and Design, " 80s in the last century, it was Shenzhen represented the reform and opening up in southeast coast; 90s, Shanghai Pudong New Areas development as representatives in the eastern part of China; into the new century, Tianjin Binhai New Area has become an important development pole in the north, then in the fourth decade, Chongqing should undoubtedly to be the central cities in the development of national strategy. Chongqing countries should bear the major historic task entrusted to not only its own to become powerful, but also be able to motivate and neighboring provinces. "

Yu Ying, Certified Planner in Chongqing Planning Bureau, thinks that Chongqing is the connection point of "the Yangtze River Line" and "Southwest China area" and an important support for the "H"-shaped development strategic frameworks of the Yangtze River economic belt and the Westward Expansion, also class A national integrated transport hub. At the level of national strategy , the effect by that Chongqing’s appearing in the "National Center City" is quite important.

"In the era of Urbanization and globalization, national center city is more performed as an integrated urban-entity with characteristics of city. A countrys position will not be defined by the size of a given region, but by the status of it’s major cities which is an important indicator of the city. "Said some experts in China, for example, there are " national central city" in Berlin, Frankfurt in Germany, Paris, Lyon in France, and the cities in United States.