Page 146 - AmCham South China 2026 Special Report on the State of Business in South China

ecological tourism and leisure agriculture, ecological In 2025, Hezhou unveiled new measures to
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protection of coastal waters and land reservation for accelerate Guangxi¡¯s ¡°AI + Manufacturing¡± action plan,
development of the Dongxing Experimental Zone. promoting industrial transformation and upgrade
and empowering manufacturing sector towards
Guangxi Dongrong Pioneering high-end, intelligent and green development.
Demonstration Zone (Hezhou)

Hezhou is adjacent to Guangdong, Hong Kong Summary
and Macau and is a thoroughfare between the three
provinces of Guangxi, Guangdong and Hunan. It is Guangxi has fully integrated with the GBA
located at the midpoint between Guangzhou and through the Dongxing Experimental Zone, the
Guilin and is also an important fulcrum for economic Pearl River-Xijiang Economic Belt, the Guangdong-
integration, industrial docking and cultural Guizhou Cooperation Special Experimental Zone
exchange between Guangxi, Guangdong, Hong and the Dongrong Pilot Demonstration Zone by
Kong and Macau. In May 2019, the development developing strategic emerging industries such
plan of Guangxi Eastern Advance Demonstration as NEVs, biomedicine, intelligent equipment and
Zone and its three-year plan were approved by the other advanced manufacturing sectors. Looking
government of autonomous region and Hezhou ahead, Guangxi will focus on promoting trade
was officially given the new positioning and new transformation and upgrade, enhancing trade
mission of building the Guangxi Eastern Advance facilitation, advancing cross-border investment
Demonstration Zone. In H1 2025, Hezhou¡¯s GDP and financing, deepen financial sector opening up
saw rapid growth of 7.2% YoY, reaching RMB45.2 and innovation and building a financial gateway
billion. During the same period, the total industrial to ASEAN. The upgrade negotiations for version
output value above designated size of the city 3.0 of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (FTA) will
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increased by 12.9% YoY . strengthen the institutional frameworks for both
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sides in areas such as the digital economy, the
In August 2022, the government released the green economy and supply chain interconnectivity.
14th Five-Year Plan for Technological Innovation
Plan in Hezhou which highlights:
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? By end of 2025, the R&D expenditure of
Hezhou will account for more than 0.9% of the GDP

? Building 90 scientific and technological
innovation platforms above the autonomous
region level

? Achieving 120 high-tech enterprises

? Transforming 100 major scientific and
technological achievements

? Cultivating more than 20 excellent animal
and plant varieties

? The investment in R&D of the whole society
will increase by more than 22% annually
113 Statistics Bureau of Guangxi, http://tjj.gxzf.gov. 115 The government of Hezhou, http://www.gxhz.
cn/tjsj/jdfx/sx/t23381159.shtml gov.cn/sy/ywzx/hzyw/t21195095.shtml
114 The government of Hezhou, http://www.gxhz. 116 Ministry of Commerce, https://fta.mofcom.gov.
gov.cn/xxgk/jcxxgk/zcjd/t13055589.shtml cn/article/fzdongtai/202506/56838_1.html

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