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Half Of China To Be Urbanized By 2010
Beijing (AFP) Nov 06, 2006 Fifty percent of China's population of more than 1.3 billion people will live in cities within four years as the nation's urbanization drive steams ahead, state media reported Monday. The number of people living in urban areas is expected to rise to 50 percent by 2010 and 60 percent by 2020, posing big challenges for the cities, Xinhua news agency cited Chou Baoxing, vice minister of construction, as saying. China's fast-paced urbanization is leading to environmental problems, traffic congestion and an inadequate social safety network for migrants, Chou said. "The three important yardsticks for judging if the urbanization drive is healthy are the level of protection of energy and other natural resources, respect for local history and culture and care for the low-income groups," Chou told an urbanization forum in Shanghai. Currently, 41 percent of Chinese live in urban areas, Xinhua said, citing Shi Nan, a leading official at the Urban Planning Society of China. China's rural population was 745.44 million at the end of last year, or 57 percent of the total, with 562.12 million people living in urban areas, according to National Bureau of Statistics figures. Rural Chinese dwellers have in recent years flooded the nation's big cities in search of better livelihoods and a piece of the nation's booming economic pie. Up to 150 million migrant workers work in urban areas, often toiling in menial jobs.
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Taiwan leader urges support for US arms package, launches warships
Taipei (AFP) Nov 2, 2006Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian on Thursday urged parliament to approve a controversial defense budget to buy more weaponry from the United States, as he commissioned two Kidd-class destroyers. "Under China's suppression, it is extremely difficult for our military to acquire modernized weapons... Any military procurement is a result of long-term planning," Chen said at the launch ceremony for the US-made ships. |
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