National Central City - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

National central city was a concept proposed by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of the People's Republic of China in 2005 as a first step in reforming urbanization in China

Urbanization in China

Urbanization in the People's Republic of China increased in speed following the initiation of the reform and opening policy. By the end of 2010, the mainland of the People's Republic of China had a total urban population of 665.57 million or 49.68 percent of the total population.The rural-to-urban...

. National central cities are described as a group of cities in charge of leading, developing, performing tasks in political, economic, and cultural aspects.

In February 2010, the ministry issued the "National Urban System Plan" and designated five major cities, Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

and Tianjin

Tianjin

' is a metropolis in northern China and one of the five national central cities of the People's Republic of China. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is, thus, under direct administration of the central government...

in the Bohai Economic Rim

Bohai Economic Rim

The Bohai Economic Rim or BER or Bohai Bay Economic Rim is a term used to describe the economic hinterland surrounding Beijing and Tianjin. It also includes areas in Hebei, Liaoning and Shandong which surrounds the Bohai Sea. This region has gone through major changes in economic and infrastructures...

, Shanghai

Shanghai

Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...

in the Yangtze River Delta

Yangtze River Delta

The Yangtze River Delta, Yangtze Delta or YRD, also called Yangzi, or Chang Jiang Delta, Rive Chang Delta Tai Lake Region or the Golden Triangle of the Yangtze, generally comprises the triangular-shaped territory of Wu-speaking Shanghai, southern Jiangsu province and northern Zhejiang province of...

, Guangzhou

Guangzhou

Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...

in the Pearl River Delta

Pearl River Delta

The Pearl River Delta , Zhujiang Delta or Zhusanjiao in Guangdong province, People's Republic of China is the low-lying area surrounding the Pearl River estuary where the Pearl River flows into the South China Sea...

, and Chongqing

Chongqing

Chongqing is a major city in Southwest China and one of the five national central cities of China. Administratively, it is one of the PRC's four direct-controlled municipalities , and the only such municipality in inland China.The municipality was created on 14 March 1997, succeeding the...

in western China.
National central cities sphere of influence have great impact around the surrounding cities on modernizing and integrating services in fields such as infrastructure

Infrastructure

Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...

, finance, public education, social welfare, sanitation, business licensing and urban planning

Urban planning

Urban planning incorporates areas such as economics, design, ecology, sociology, geography, law, political science, and statistics to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities....

. The ministry also makes mention of regional central cities including Shenzhen

Shenzhen

Shenzhen is a major city in the south of Southern China's Guangdong Province, situated immediately north of Hong Kong. The area became China's first—and one of the most successful—Special Economic Zones...

, Nanjing

Nanjing

' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...

, Wuhan

Wuhan

Wuhan is the capital of Hubei province, People's Republic of China, and is the most populous city in Central China. It lies at the east of the Jianghan Plain, and the intersection of the middle reaches of the Yangtze and Han rivers...

, Shenyang

Shenyang

Shenyang , or Mukden , is the capital and largest city of Liaoning Province in Northeast China. Currently holding sub-provincial administrative status, the city was once known as Shengjing or Fengtianfu...

, Chengdu

Chengdu

Chengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status...

, and Xi'an

Xi'an

Xi'an is the capital of the Shaanxi province, and a sub-provincial city in the People's Republic of China. One of the oldest cities in China, with more than 3,100 years of history, the city was known as Chang'an before the Ming Dynasty...

List of the national central cities

Division	Hanzi (S Simplified Chinese character Simplified Chinese characters are standardized Chinese characters prescribed in the Xiandai Hanyu Tongyong Zibiao for use in Mainland China. Along with traditional Chinese characters, it is one of many standard character sets of the contemporary Chinese written language... ) & Pinyin Pinyin Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...	Total GDP (2010)	Per capita (2010)	Urban Population (2010)	Municipal Population (2010)	Area (km²)	Density (km²)	Economic Zone	Region	Subdivisions
Beijing Beijing Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...	北京; Běijīng	CN¥ 13,777 million	US$ 13,406	11,716,000	19,612,368	16,801.25	1,309.4	Bohai Economic Rim Bohai Economic Rim The Bohai Economic Rim or BER or Bohai Bay Economic Rim is a term used to describe the economic hinterland surrounding Beijing and Tianjin. It also includes areas in Hebei, Liaoning and Shandong which surrounds the Bohai Sea. This region has gone through major changes in economic and infrastructures...	North North China thumb\|250px\|Northern [[People's Republic of China]] region.Northern China or North China is a geographical region of China. The heartland of North China is the North China Plain....	List
Chongqing Chongqing Chongqing is a major city in Southwest China and one of the five national central cities of China. Administratively, it is one of the PRC's four direct-controlled municipalities , and the only such municipality in inland China.The municipality was created on 14 March 1997, succeeding the...	重庆; Chóngqìng	CN¥ 7,895 million	US$ 11,220	4,513,100	28,846,170	82,300.00	382.0	West Triangle Economic Zone	Southwest Southwest China Southwest China is a region of the People's Republic of China defined by governmental bureaus that includes the municipality of Chongqing, the provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou, and the Tibet Autonomous Region.-Provinces:-Municipalities:...	List
Guangzhou Guangzhou Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...	广州; Guǎngzhōu	CN¥ 10,603 million	US$ 18,803	7,727,163	12,700,800	7,434.40	1,055.0	Pearl River Delta Economic Zone Pearl River Delta Economic Zone The Pearl River Delta Economic Zone , which consists of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Dongguan, Foshan, Zhongshan, Zhuhai, Jiangmen, and parts of Huizhou and Zhaoqing, has been the most economically dynamic region of the Chinese Mainland since the launch of China's reform programme in 1979.The 2008-20...	South Central South Central China South Central China is a region of the People's Republic of China defined by governmental bureaus that includes the provinces of Guangdong, Hainan, Henan, Hubei, and Hunan, and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, however excluding the 2 special administrative regions : Hong Kong and...	List
Shanghai Shanghai Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...	上海; Shànghǎi	CN¥ 16,972 million	US$ 16,683	12,030,644	23,019,148	7,037.00	3,298.3	Yangtze River Delta Economic Zone Yangtze River Delta Economic Zone Yangtze River Delta Economic Zone or Yangtze River Delta Economic Region is an economic region in China that encompasses Shanghai municipality, Zhejiang and Jiangsu province...	East East China East China is a geographical and a loosely-defined cultural region that covers the eastern coastal area of China.Although an intangible and loosely defined concept, for administrative and governmental purposes, the region is defined by the government of the People's Republic of China to include...	List
Tianjin Tianjin ' is a metropolis in northern China and one of the five national central cities of the People's Republic of China. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is, thus, under direct administration of the central government...	天津; Tiānjīn	CN¥ 9,168 million	US$ 12,244	6,825,105	12,938,224	11,760.00	1,044.4	Bohai Economic Rim Bohai Economic Rim The Bohai Economic Rim or BER or Bohai Bay Economic Rim is a term used to describe the economic hinterland surrounding Beijing and Tianjin. It also includes areas in Hebei, Liaoning and Shandong which surrounds the Bohai Sea. This region has gone through major changes in economic and infrastructures...	North North China thumb\|250px\|Northern [[People's Republic of China]] region.Northern China or North China is a geographical region of China. The heartland of North China is the North China Plain....	List

List of the national central cities

See also