Three years ago, General Secretary Xi Jinping said that we should make a city alive. Keeping in mind his entrustment, Qingdao has embarked on the most profound and radical development changes.

Over the years, Qingdao turned to be a metropolis of three-dimensional, comprehensive, all-round endogenous and vibrant that constantly refreshing people's cognition.

The spring of high-quality development came into Qingdao, which is open, modern, vital and fashionable.

Changes in the pattern
Leading the way in building a new development pattern
It is said that the stage extends as far as the heart goes. To make a city alive, Qingdao must always open its eyes to the whole world. It is an inevitable choice for the city to redefine Qingdao in the new opportunities and vast space brought about by the new development pattern.

Qingdao plays an important part of ‘dual node’ city in the new development pattern of ‘dual cycle’. As a developed area on the east coast, the economic outlet of the nine provinces in the Yellow River Basin and the third largest city in the north, Qingdao is not only a ‘dual node’ city of internal and external circulation, but also a ‘dual node’ city of the domestic east-west, north-south cycle. 

There are two major platforms for Qingdao’s opening up and development, the Shanghai Cooperation Demonstration Zone and the Qingdao Area of the Shandong Pilot Free Trade Zone , which are also an important ‘entry point’ for the city to integrate into the international cycle. Under the background of new development pattern, the ‘dual node’ Qingdao is able to make a better service. Utilizing resource endowments , Qingdao proactively choose to innovate a ‘strong magnetic field’ for attracting investment, which enable to serve the overall situation of the opening up and development of the country and the province.

Such ‘international living rooms’ as China-Japan, China-Korea, China-Germany, China-Israel, Shanghai Cooperation Organization have not only become a shining new business card for Qingdao to gather and allocate global element resources, but also become an important platform that play a leading role in radiation and open up to a wider area and its development and empowerment. And these diplomacy provide foreign companies and chambers of commerce intending to enter the Chinese market with one-stop services such as transit, settlement, display, and entrepreneurship, which jointly promote more diversified and higher-level cooperation.

Changes in the industry
High-quality development upgrades urban competitiveness

To make a city alive needs the vigorous industry . As an important core of Shandong's ‘three-core lead’ in the conversion of new and old kinetic energy, Qingdao is one of the main engines for that.

In 2020, under the leadership of the city’s leaders, Qingdao will launch 13 special classes for the conversion of new and old kinetic energy, aiming to the top ten industries in the province and 15 offensives in Qingdao. These special classes are focusing on the following 13 industrial chains: information technology, new energy and new materials, medical care, health care ,modern finance, modern logistics, commerce, business services, modern oceans, high-end chemicals, cultural creativity, boutique tourism, modern and efficient agriculture, and high-end equipment. By this way, Qingdao can integrate advantageous element resources, accelerate the upgrading of the industrial base and modernize the industrial chain and the level of industrial clustering.

In Qingdao's increasingly complete modern industrial system, industrial Internet, characterized by the highly cross-border and highly integrated, is providing support for various industries to gather at the high end of the value chain.
Synchronizing with the continuous deepening of the digital transformation process, Qingdao's innovation capabilities is constantly growing. To build an important national science and technology innovation base in the north of the Yangtze River, Qingdao has been approved as a national independent innovation demonstration zone, the first batch of national intellectual property demonstration cities and an artificial intelligence innovation application pilot zone. Haier Group, Qingdao High-tech Zone, Qingdao Blue Valley and Laixi The city have approved as a national demonstration base for ‘double innovation’.

The innovation carrier has an agglomeration effect in Qingdao. The construction of major innovation platforms such as the Qingdao Marine Science and Technology Pilot National Laboratory, the Marine Science Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Shandong Energy Research Institute was accelerated. 246 innovation platforms were added at the provincial level and above. The number of national high-tech enterprises exceeded 4,300. The scale of venture capital investment exceeded 100 billion yuan, and the total number of talents has reached 2.3 million. The accumulation of innovative elements is injecting the vitality factor of new industrial kinetic energy into the city.

Change in the ecology
Efficient governance to improve urban development environment

On March 5, 2020, Qingdao innovated a new way of high-efficiency governance, launched the theme activity of "I love Qingdao, I have discontent, I want to speak" to listen to the people's voice and solve the problems. In the past year, the total number of appeals collected through all channels reached 2.919 million, with a completion rate of 99.29% and a satisfaction rate of 95.43%.

This activity have been deepened over the past year, which makes the multi interaction truly become the starting point of social governance. The government departments should be forced to listen to public opinion, exchange wisdom, solve their problems, and guide the majority of the city to make complaints about the growing pains of urban development in a comprehensive and long-term way. We should have a sense of responsibility, take an active part in urban construction and social governance, make a positive voice, and build a stronger force for "love Qingdao, make Qingdao better".

Youth is the backbone of innovation and entrepreneurship, and Qingdao has been continuously improving the "cost performance" of youth entrepreneurship. "Qingdao youth post" online application will be able to stay for 7 days for free. The talent policy, job information of "Bluebird plan" and other mobile phones can be checked. Recently, six new policies for outstanding talents have been introduced at one time, which makes it easy for entrepreneurs to take the first step and willingly become the City Partner of Qingdao.

Qingdao was rated as the best talent introduction city and the best employment promotion city in China in 2020. It was selected into the list of five cities with a better life in the eyes of 18-35-year-old young people, and selected again as "the most attractive Chinese city in the eyes of foreign talents".

Changes in the future
In Fourteenth Five-Year Plan, Qingdao points to higher goals

To make a city alive is always in progress.

As entering the first year of the 14th Five-Year Plan, the core key word for the city's future development is that make a city alive in a higher level.

Drawing a grand blueprint for development in 2035, Qingdao will basically realize socialist modernization at a high level, build an open, modern, dynamic and fashionable international metropolis with strong influence, cultivate the core competitiveness of the national central city, and head up to the forefront of the world city system as a global ocean central city.

Setting the long-term goal of 2035 to achieve a good start to modernization. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, Qingdao will focus on building the city as a global ocean center, an international gateway hub, an international innovative center, and a livable and industrial quality bay area. 

Besides, Qingdao will make its efforts to be the important fulcrum of the domestic big cycle and strategic link between the domestic and international double cycles. Therefore, we will promote the digital transformation of the city, and basically build an open, modern, dynamic, and fashionable international metropolis.We will lead the way in such six fields as high-quality economic development, open innovation and reform, social civilization, construction of ecological civilization, the construction of a happy and beautiful home, and the effectiveness of urban governance. In this way, Qingdao will drive the Shandong Peninsula urban agglomeration to comprehensively enhance its strategic position in the national development map, and enhance its competitiveness and influence in the world urban system.

To make a city alive at a higher level and to turn goals and visions into reality as soon as possible, Qingdao has further identify its priorities.

Firstly, further improving scientific and technological innovation capabilities to build an important national scientific and technological innovation base in the north of the Yangtze River.

Secondly, vigorously developing the real economy to build a strong industrial city.

Thirdly, opening to the outside world at a higher level to create a new platform for international cooperation under the Belt and Road initiative.

Fourthly, energetically developing the marine economy to build a global ocean center city.

It is another spring when entering the first year of the 14th Five-Year Plan and Qingdao is writing another more exciting story of spring..