Jinan， a Famous Chinese City of Springs

inan， capital of Shandong Province， is the provincial center of politics， economy， culture， finance， transport， convention and exhibition， science and education. Its favorable geographic location makes it an important transportation hub from all directions. It has jurisdiction over six districts， three counties and one county-level city with a total area of 8，000 square kilometers and a permanent residential population of 6.8 million.

Known as the “City of Springs”， it is an historical cultural city. The city walls were built more than 2，600 years ago. The city was first called Luo， after a river of the same name， but changed its name to Jinan in the Han Dynasty about 2，100 years ago because it was located south （Nan） of the river Ji （now the Yellow River）. It has been the capital of Shandong Province since the Ming Dynasty （1368 - 1644）. Jinan formally became a city in July 1929.

Jinan is filled with the typical artesian karst springs of China， and within the 2.6 sq.km. old city proper， there are more than 100 natural springs of different sizes， of which the Baotu Spring， Heihu （Black Tiger） Spring， Wulong （Five Dragon） Pool and Pearl Spring are the most famous. These springs， Daming Lake， and the surrounding Thousand-Buddha Mountain， Que and Hua hills give the city its vitality and charm.

A City with Vitality

The city has seen rapid development. In 2013， its total output value reached 523 billion yuan， a 9.6% increase from the previous year； total investment in fixed assets was 263.83 billion yuan （up 20.7%）； investment in industry grew 24.5%； and 851 projects with investment of over 100 million yuan each were under construction， 188 more than the previous year.

In 2013， the share of the tertiary industry in the city’s total output value reached 55.3%； the indices of taxes and profits of industries of designated size increased by 28.7 and 50.1 percentage point respectively； the proportion of new and high technology industry grew to 40.56% with an output value of 193.02 billion yuan， a 14.1% increase over the previous year.

The city has seen continued improvement of people’s living standards. In 2013， per capita disposable income reached 35，648 yuan， an increase of 9.5% over the previous year； with rapid development of science and technology， the city had 268 innovative enterprises， of which two were recognized at national level， 48 provincial level and 218 at city level.

The construction of a beautiful spring city has made much headway. In 2013， investment in public facilities reached 8，750 million yuan （up 85.6% over the previous year）； green coverage reached 39%， while per capita green area reached 11.3 square meters.

The rich culture of Qi and Lu has enriched people’s life. The successful holding in 2013 of the 10th China Art Festival， the completion of the grand theatre， library， art gallery and mass cultural centers enrich the spiritual life of the people.

Dialogues with Friends

from All Corners

Jinan has established friendship-city relations with 21 cities in 20 countries and friendly cooperation relations with 24 cities in 18 countries. These cities have served as bridges for Jinan to conduct exchanges with the outside world. To publicize the distinctive culture of Jinan and strengthen the protection， development and utilization of its spring resources， the city held the 2012 Jinan International Friendship City Cultural Exchange Activity — Spring Culture Dialogue， the 2013 International Friendship City Trade Symposium — Enterprises’ Tour of Jinan， and the 2014 Jinan International Friendship City Cultural Exchange — First Book Exhibition. In 2014， Jinan， in cooperation with six surrounding cities of Shandong Province， namely Zibo， Tai’an， Laiwu， Dezhou， Liaocheng and Binzhou， held a forum with the title “Foreigners’ Views on the Provincial Capital City and Surrounding Cities Economic Zone”. Foreign experts living and working in the area were invited to the forum to exchange opinions on local development.

The forum has become a new platform for exchange and cooperation between Jinan and its friendship cities and helps to bring about win-win results and promote common development.