The Jianghan Customs Clock Tower rises over passing ships on the Yangtze River in Wuhan, Hubei province. Built in 1924, the old customs office building is a symbol of the city. Provided to China Daily

Is there a person who represents Hubei's culture or history?

Li: I would say Zhang Zhidong, governor of Hubei and Hunan in the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and Wu Tianxiang, a model citizen in Wuhan today as he is always ready to help others.

Zhang built the iron and steel plant, textile factory, armory and Beijing-Wuhan railway and a number of modern schools during his 18-year regime. The industry and education facilities laid the foundation for Hubei's modernization, and some of them still function well today. Were it not for Zhang's work, Hubei would not have become an industrial, transportation, economic and cultural center in central China, and Wuhan would not have had the reputation as the "Chicago of the East" in the early 20th century.

Wu, a civil servant in a community petition and complaint-processing center, donates all of his savings to help laid-off workers, widowed senior citizens and orphans. He has donated more than 10,000 milliliters of blood and bone marrow to help needy patients. He has jumped into the Yangtze River four times to save people who have fallen into the water. He is moral example of to day's Wuhan.

How will Hubei open up to the world?

Li: The central government's Belt and Road Initiative, the Yangtze River Economic Belt Strategy and the development plan of the city cluster overlap in Hubei, creating new opportunities for the province's opening-up. Last year, Hubei transplanted the opening-up experience of the Shanghai Free Trade Zone and implemented 137 reforms to make the government more efficient, create a healthy business environment and provide better public services for the people.

Hubei will not only strengthen its cooperation with the provinces along the Yangtze River but also boost its connectivity with the world. The province will have 50 international air routes; two railways reaching Russia via Mongolia, and reaching Europe via the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region; and several waterways to Taiwan, Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, Europe and Africa. The province now has 13 ports, and will apply to open more ports for special commodities, build economic and industrial systems around the port and simplify procedures for customs clearance, inspection and quarantine.

Hubei will enlarge its exports and promote the growth of relevant industries. Technology, brand, quality and service should be the core competitiveness for Hubei's exports.

Hubei welcomes foreign investment, especially from countries and regions along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. Hubei encourages its agricultural, textile, steel, construction material and automobile industries to relocate to foreign countries.

You called for cooperation between California's Silicon Valley and Wuhan's Optical Valley during your visit to the United States in 2012. How is the cooperation now?

Li: Silicon Valley is a model for Wuhan's Optical Valley. Hubei sends people to visit and study in Silicon Valley every year. Hubei hosts expos and forums on technology, innovation and starting new businesses regularly to deepen bilateral cooperation. Last year, Wuhan held a round table dialogue attended by mayors from the two sides. The Wuhan-San Francisco air route shortens the distance between the two places.

Optical Valley attaches more importance to nurturing a favorable environment for innovation, starting new businesses and forging closer ties between research and production. Since 2012, Optical Valley has attracted 107 entrepreneurs from the US, mostly from Silicon Valley, to create new ventures in Hubei, and the two "valleys" have signed more than 20 cooperative project agreements worth $3.5 billion. The bilateral cooperation effectively supports the development of emerging and advanced manufacturing industries, such as electronic information and biotechnology, in the province.

How does Hubei make a good use of the Internet industry in its industrial transformation?

Li: The electronic information industry, a key industry in Hubei, generated 413.7 billion yuan in revenue last year. The e-commerce business transaction volume hit 800 billion yuan in Hubei last year, up 35 percent year-on-year, and was ranked eighth among the 30 some provincial regions. Hubei has 21 million Internet users. Wuhan is expediting its pace toward becoming a well-known software city, with fast development in the industrial and embedded software, space and geographic information, information security, digital contents and design services industries.

Wuhan applies the mobile Internet to many services in transportation management, healthcare, education and bill payment. The Donghu Lake High-technology Zone in Wuhan has seen the rise of a batch of new enterprises in Internet-based manufacturing industries, modern agriculture, e-commerce, finance, logistics and tourism. The new industries, with the help of the Internet, will generate vitality for the economy and society, as well as create jobs.

You have publicly recommended 16 books on the economy, Internet, development and Chinese history since 2012.Why do you do so?

Li: Reading is a respectable lifestyle, no matter how times change. Adding knowledge and learning about technology through reading is also an important means to change one's fate and serve the country. Hubei has a long civilized history and rich cultural resources. As Party chief of Hubei, I think it's my responsibility to be an example in terms of reading. It is part of my social responsibility to help cultivate a pro-reading atmosphere. Reading benefits society and the people in various forms that cannot be replaced by other means.

Could you tell a story about your interaction with local people in Hubei?

Li: In the winter of 2010, I visited Dawu and Hong'an, two poor mountainous counties and a former revolutionary base for the Red Army in the 1930s and 1940s. When I entered the mud house of Liu Haihua in Hong'an, I found Liu and his wife were physically challenged, and his 76-year-old mother was huddled up in a thin quilt. Local people made great contributions to the revolution and the country's independence decades ago.

It is my duty to help them live better lives as soon as possible and enjoy the fruits of the country's economic growth. The Liu family's hard life provoked my thinking on the many pending issues in Hubei's rural areas. Serving the people is the core of human-oriented governance.