Lanzhou city

Updated: 2013-10-17
( travelchinaguide.com )

Lanzhou is the capital city of Gansu province in northwest China. The Yellow River runs through the city, ensuring rich crops of many juicy and fragrant fruits. The city is the transportation and telecommunication center of the region.

Overview: Lanzhou, capital city of Gansu province, sits at the junction of three plateaus in West China. It is the political, economic and cultural center of Gansu, and covers an area of 13,100 square kilometers. Located in the upper reaches of the Yellow River, Lanzhou plays an important role in the Western Longhai-Lanxin Railway economic belt. It is also a key link between the New Eurasian Land Bridge, Central and Western Asia, and Europe. The Yellow River runs across the city from east to west, and mountains surround the city in the north and south. Soaked in a temperate continental climate, the city was home to 3.62 million residents from Han, Hui, Man and Tibetan ethnic groups at the end of 2011. Its counties include Yongdeng, Yuzhong and Gaolan. Its districts are Chengguan, Qilihe, Anning, Xigu and Honggu.

Resource: Lanzhou has abundant ferrous, non-ferrous and precious metals as well as rare earth minerals, all of which have great economic development value. The city has rich hydropower resources, and the upper reaches of the Yellow River can house 25 large and medium-sized hydropower stations. At the moment, the Liujiaxia, Bapanxia and Yanguoxia hydropower stations have been built. Lanzhou is also famous for its various fruits and tourist resources. The Maijishan and Kongtong Mountains are located in the east, Bingling Temple in the west, Labrang Monastery in the south, and Mogao Grottoes in the north. The city is also home to the best preserved ancient government office, the well-known Zhongshan Iron Bridge, and Xinglongshan Mountain. It has three national forest parks and a statue symbolizing the Yellow River.

Economy: In 2011, Lanzhou's GDP totaled 136 billion yuan ($22.3 billion), an increase of 15 percent over the previous year. The primary industry's added value grew 5.2 percent year-on-year to 4 billion yuan. The secondary industry's added value rose 16.3 percent year-on-year to 65.7 billion yuan. The tertiary industry's added value climbed 14.3 percent year-on-year to 66.3 billion yuan. The private economy enjoyed 20.3 percent growth in added value to reach 52.1 billion yuan, accounting for 38.32 percent of local GDP. The city realized total retail sales of consumer goods at 64 billion yuan, an increase of 17.4 percent year-on-year. General budget revenue totaled 8.6 billion yuan, up 27.9 percent over the previous year. General budget spending rose 19.4 percent year-on-year to 17.5 billion yuan.

Project: Many major projects are under construction. Construction has begun for 27 central government and provincial projects involving investments totaling 15.8 billion yuan, 73 municipal projects involving investments totaling 17.2 billion yuan, 55 extension projects involved investments of 22.7 billion yuan, and 40 out of 45 new projects involving investment of 10.3 billion yuan. The 66 disaster reconstruction projects by Yuzhong Steel over-fulfilled the investment plan, and cable and hydropower station projects have been put into production.

Agricultural production: Agricultural productions are progressing steadily. In 2011, the crop planting area stood at 220,000 hectares. Grain output totaled 423,900 tons, an increase of 4.98 percent year-on-year. During the summer, grain output totaled 169,700 tons, down 6.14 percent year-on-year. In autumn, grain output totaled 254,200 tons, an increase of 13.94 percent over the previous year. The vegetable planting area totaled 50,313 hectares, an increase of 3.13 percent year-on-year, with production output of 2.09 million tons, an increase of 5.63 percent year-on-year. At the end of the year, the total capacity of agricultural machinery reached 1.45 million kilowatts. The new irrigation area covered –8,667 hectares, and 139,500 tons of fertilizer had been applied.

The people livelihood: In 2011, per capita disposable income was 15,953 yuan in Lanzhou, up 13.45 percent over the previous year. Wage income was 11,037 yuan, an increase of 14.69 percent. Consumer spending per capita was 12,352 yuan, up 13.01 percent. Rural income per capita was 5,252 yuan, up 14.5 percent year-on-year. Rural wage income totaled 2,643 yuan, up 18.7 percent. Per capita living expenditure was 4,331 yuan, an increase of 17 percent year-on-year.

Employment and social security：In 2011, the number of new urban employees was 53,900, and the registered urban unemployment rate was 2.72 percent. A total of 5,432 companies opted into endowment insurance, involving 346,300 employees. A total of 4,487 companies opted into unemployment insurance, involving 561,100 people. A total of 789,400 employees got medical insurance.

Environmental protection：The environment of urban districts in Lanzhou has improved significantly. The number of days with high air quality reached 242, 19 days more than last year. The concentration of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and inhalable particles dropped 12.96 percent, 8.70 percent and 7.38 percent, respectively. Drinking and surface water quality adhered to standards. The city finished 18 emission reduction projects the whole year.

Social undertakings：In 2011, there were 916,000 students in Lanzhou, including 374,000 college students, 88,000 vocational school students, 187,000 middle school students and 209,000 primary school students. Education at all levels was well developed. The enrollment ratio in middle school was 90.5 percent, and 94.2 percent of children living in the suburbs went to high school.

Lanzhou has nine libraries and 10 cultural centers. Many international and domestic sporting events have been held in Lanzhou, such as the Lanzhou International Marathon, the International Cycling Race around Qinghai Lake, the China MBA Yellow River Drifting Race, the China Robot Contest and the first Car Networking Conference.

Lanzhou was home to 1,606 medical institutions, with 25,411 hospital beds and 26,363 health technicians.

Shooping: There is Dongfanghong Department Store in the south, Guofang Shopping Center in the east and Lanzhou Gym sitting in the west. The square is the daily entertainment place for local people and is also an ideal shopping area for tourists. The popular commercial streets are mainly Qingyang Road, Zhongshan Road, Jiuquan Road, Zhangye Road, Yongchang Road, Qin'an Road, Longxi Road and Linxia Road, etc.

Travel: While the natural parks around the city such as Yantan Park and Shifogou National Forest Park will restore and refresh you, the White Pagoda Park and the Five-Spring Mountain Park will give you an understanding of the cultural side of Lanzhou.

The Bingling Thousand Buddha Caves, Labrang Monastery, Sangke Prairie, Waterwheel Garden and Gansu Provincial Museum will satisfy the tourists thoroughly. Besides the above-mentioned attractions, the hospitable locals, multifarious restaurants, cheap yet delicious snacks, and convenient transportation system will all ensure that you get a memorable trip in this tolerant and placid city.