Better economy, better public service

The Minhang District is committed to expanding its economy this year.儲存 A stronger economy means higher personal incomes and more government revenue available to enhance the lives of district residents in terms of health, education, transport and elderly care.In a report to the 6th session of the Minhang District People's Congress held mid this month, leaders said building the economy means building more commercial developments, like the Lifeng Building and the Bailian Shopping Mall. There are already seven commercial buildings in Minhang paying over 100 million yuan (US$16.39 million) in taxes. That's a 133 percent increase from the prior year."We are competing with sites in Shanghai's city center in attracting building development to Minhang," said Li Aihong, a Congress deputy. "We need to stress the advantages we possess. We need to focus on development of economic parks if we are to commercially brand ourselves."At the heart of all the development talk is the domino effect new business will bring to district coffers and to the lives of residents.Increasing incomeThe disposable income of urban families in Minhang District grew 9.4 percent last year to an average 36,870 yuan. In rural areas, income gained 10.2 percent to 24,830 yuan. It was the ninth consecutive year when the pace of growth in rural incomes outpaced that of urban areas. The government is predicting incomes will increase by about 8 percent in 2014, according to the report.Government revenue will be allocated to improving public services.The report said the district will step up assistance to the aged by building new facilities and streamlining care into a continuum that provides a seamless system as people grow older.Hongqiao and Maqiao Town have increased their number of elderly care beds to 829 beds. Expanded in-home care 迷你倉ervices now allow 2,010 senior citizens to remain in their apartments instead of being forced by bad health to move into institutional facilities."Services for the elderly need further improvement," said deputy Fang Yongchang. "Taking care of the aged in their own homes has to be closely coordinated with social medical insurance and community care organizations."On the transport front, the report lauded progress in the popular bicycle rental program, which was begun to get cars off the roads. At the same time, 190,000 parking places were added to the district in 2013, and eight new bus lines opened. This year, two new bus lines will be added, and six bus lines in larger residential areas will be adjusted to better address local transport needs.The reports said 33,720 jobs were created in 2013, and 655 budding entrepreneurs received government help in starting their own businesses."Comprehensive study is required before implementing new policies to ensure efficiency," said Minhang District Party Secretary Sun Chao. "Government departments need to improve their criteria for organizing and evaluating their operations."Streamlined proceduresMinhang will continue to streamline its administrative procedures, especially as they pertain to the approval process for project development. Red tape will be cut in 17 departments and in 31 approval tracks. The aim is to hasten approvals by more than two-thirds, the report said."The goal of reducing administrative examinations and the approval process by two-thirds wasn't attained last year as we had hoped," said Shen Guanxing, another deputy, "The government needs to make a more concerted effort in that regard."The Congress also wants the government to operate in a more business-like fashion, encouraging more private capital to join in development programs.self storage