The fourth session of the 14th Zhangjiagang Municipal People's Congress commenced in Zhangjiagang, East China’s Jiangsu province, on Jan 4, with 326 deputies attending.

Xu Zhonggao, director of the Standing Committee of the Municipal People's Congress, presided over the meeting. Pan Guoqiang, mayor of Zhangjiagang, delivered the 2019 work report of the municipal government, saying the government had fulfilled the goals it set at the beginning of the previous year.

According to Pan, the city’s economy has seen stable growth in 2019, with its GDP expected to reach 285 billion yuan ($40.84 billion), a year-on-year increase of 6 percent. Public budget revenue increased 5.8 percent year on year to 24.7 billion yuan; fixed-asset investment grew 10.3 percent; per capita disposable income grew 8.1 percent to 57,800 yuan; and total retail sales of consumer goods rose 6 percent year on year to 64.2 billion yuan.

The city also attracted 14.35 billion yuan in investment, surpassing its annual goal by 15.4 percent. The industrial output of enterprises above designated size - those with an annual revenue of 20 million yuan ($2.86 million) or higher – totaled 453 billion yuan.

Over the past year, Zhangjiagang has also made significant progress in environmental protection. The average density of PM 2.5 -- a dangerous particulate matter with a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers – has been dropping. Meanwhile, the proportion of days with good air quality in the town reached 78 percent, and water quality in important rivers has also improved, with all of them meeting the provincial "A" standard.

In the work report, Pan also established goals for 2020. The mayor noted that this year is the last year of the 13th Five-Year-Plan and a decisive year in the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

He pointed out that there are three main goals of government work: Staying focused on high-quality development, promoting reform and opening-up, and improving social governance.

"Let’s strive to develop Zhangjiagang, think openly, and act boldly," Pan said, hoping for a bright future for the city.