China's 'pairing assistance program' creates new opportunities for Xinjiang

China's pairing assistance program to mobilize nationwide support for development in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, which started nearly three decades ago, has created new opportunities for the remote far western region.

China's top political advisor Wang Huning, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, joined delegates from 19 provincial-level regions at a work conference on implementation of the pairing-assistance-program in Xinjiang.

The event, which was held from Monday to Wednesday in Xinjiang's Hotan City, highlighted the progress made to relieve poverty and improve livelihoods in the region.

Attendees of the conference visited local sites to see progress on the ground firsthand. In Hotan's industrial park, a car manufacturing plant built with support from east China's Anhui Province in 2022 has filled a major gap in the region's heavy industry. Manufacturing up to 20,000 vehicles a year, it marks a first for local auto-production and is creating job opportunities for young people.

"I didn't have a job before and just stayed at home, so I didn't have this kind of opportunity. I've been working at this company for about a year now, and I make over 3,000 [yuan] (418 U.S. dollars) a month. I'm starting to save some money and planning to get married next year," said Abudukudusi, an employee.

Financial assistance from Anhui province is also helping develop local agriculture. In Pishan county, a large-scale plantation of Gua Lou, a plant used in Traditional Chinese Medicine, has created jobs for more than 2,500 people. The project also promotes cultivation techniques among local villagers, encouraging them to grow the crop in their own courtyards to boost household income.

"The company gave us the seedlings, fertilizer, and taught us how to grow them. Now they've already started coming up, and once they're mature, we expect to make over 3,000 yuan (418 U.S. dollars) from just a small plot. Before, we only had a few fruit trees in the yard, and they didn't bring in much. If this one does well, I'm thinking about planting even more next time," said Maimaitinin, a villager.

In addition to boosting Xinjiang's economy, an assistance arrangement with Beijing has focused on cultural development -- supporting the construction of museums and libraries, and promoting traditional culture and education. By revitalizing old towns and restoring historical districts, cultural tourism is also on the rise in the region. In particular, Hotan prefecture alone received more than 30 million tourist visits last year, with the tourism revenue up about 35 percent year on year.

China's pairing assistance program has played a key role in lifting Xinjiang out of poverty. As the region continues to tap into its unique strengths, the program is set to keep driving economic growth and improving lives across all ethnic communities, paving the way for a brighter, more prosperous future.

China's 'pairing assistance program' creates new opportunities for Xinjiang

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠China's natural gas production is projected to reach 300 billion cubic meters by 2030, according to a development report released in Beijing.

The report, covering the development of China's oil and gas industry during the country's 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021–2025), said proven geological reserves rose by 7 billion tons of oil and 7 trillion cubic meters of gas, up 43 percent and 40 percent respectively from the previous five-year period. Oil and gas production hit record highs.

"The oil output is likely to reach between 215 and 216 million tons this year. Natural gas has seen major growth during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021–2025), with annual domestic output rising by nearly 13 billion cubic meters. In the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), we expect annual increases of more than 10 billion cubic meters, reaching 300 billion cubic meters around 2030," said Wu Mouyuan, deputy director of the Economics and Technology Research Institute of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC).

The report forecast that China's energy structure will feature less coal, stable oil and gas, and rising non-fossil fuels over the next decade.

By 2060, fossil fuels are expected to account for 23 percent of the energy mix, hydropower and nuclear 19 percent, wind 25 percent, and solar 30 percent, the report said.

"In the next five years, through the integrated development of fossil energy and renewables, we will achieve a heathy, stable, and resilient energy system. Clean energy will continue to grow rapidly. More than 90 percent of renewable energy will be consumed via electricity, so the electrification at end-use sectors is a key direction of transformation in the future," said Wu.

With the rapid growth of artificial intelligence and new high-energy industries, China's power demand will exceed 20 trillion kilowatt hours by 2060, double the 2025 level. Electrification at end-use sectors is expected to reach 62 percent, rising by nearly one percentage point annually, the report projected.

China to see gas output hitting 300 bcm by 2030: report