1. Administrative Region
Sichuan, referred to as “Chuan” or “Shu”, is located in southwest China, in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, and is known as the “Land of Abundance”. The province has an area of 486,000 square kilometers, ranking fifth in the country. It has 21 cities (prefectures) and 183 counties (cities, districts). It borders seven provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the central government), including Chongqing, Guizhou, Yunnan, Tibet, Qinghai, Gansu, and Shaanxi. It has the largest Yi ethnic group settlement area in the country, the second largest Tibetan ethnic group settlement area in the country, and the only Qiang ethnic group settlement area in the country. In 2023, the province’s GDP exceeded 6 trillion yuan, an increase of 6%, local general public budget revenue increased by 13.3%, industrial added value above designated size increased by 6.1%, fixed asset investment in the whole society increased by 4.4%, and total retail sales of consumer goods increased by 9.2%. At the end of the year, the province had a permanent population of 83.68 million and a registered population of 90.714 million.
2. History and Culture
Since Sichuan has a long history and culture, it was the land of Bashu in the pre-Qin period. In the Northern Song Dynasty, Sichuan-Xiadao was established, and later it was divided into Yizhou, Zizhou, Lizhou, and Kuizhou, collectively known as Sichuan Dao, and the name Sichuan began to appear. It is one of the birthplaces of Taoism in China, the birthplace of ancient Shu civilization, and the place where the world’s earliest paper money “Jiaozi” appeared. Sichuan brocade and Sichuan shadow play are listed in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List. Sichuan’s salt industry culture and wine culture have a long history; the Three Kingdoms culture, the Red Army culture, and the Ba people culture are brilliant; especially the ancient Shu civilization represented by Sanxingdui and Jinsha Ruins is even more glorious and mysterious. There are 262 national key cultural relics protection units and 1,214 provincial cultural relics protection units; 153 items are on the national intangible cultural heritage representative list and 1,132 items are on the provincial intangible cultural heritage representative list.
3. Natural resources
Rich in natural resources, it has 3 world natural heritage sites (Jiuzhaigou, Huanglong, giant panda habitat), 1 world cultural heritage site (Qingcheng Mountain-Dujiangyan), and 1 world cultural and natural dual heritage site (Emei Mountain-Leshan Giant Buddha). There are 939 national A-level tourist attractions, including 17 5A-level scenic spots. Vigorously promote the green transformation of development mode, and the construction of the Beautiful China Pilot Zone has achieved remarkable results. The water quality of 203 national monitoring sections has reached 100%, the water quality of the main streams of the Yangtze River and the Yellow River has stabilized at Class II, and the ecological barriers in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and the Yellow River have been continuously consolidated.
4. Scientific research and education strength
With strong scientific and educational strength, it is one of the eight national pilot zones for comprehensively promoting innovation and reform. It has a large number of regional major innovation platforms such as the China (Sichuan) Free Trade Pilot Zone, Chengdu National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone, Tianfu New Area, Mianyang Science and Technology City, and Panxi Strategic Resources Innovation Development Pilot Zone. There are 22,000 schools of all levels and types in the province, 137 colleges and universities, 369 research institutes, 205 national science and technology innovation platforms, and 10 national large scientific facilities. Five new academicians of the “two academies” in the province have been added, reaching 67.
5. Industrial system
The industrial system is complete. It is one of the three major power equipment manufacturing bases and four major electronic information industry bases in the country. It has three national strategic emerging industry clusters and three national advanced manufacturing industry clusters. Four industrial clusters have been selected as national small and medium-sized enterprise characteristic industrial clusters. Chengdu, Deyang, Mianyang, and Yibin have been selected as the top 100 cities in the country for advanced manufacturing. 10 scenes have been selected as the national artificial intelligence “smart 100 scenes”. Dongfang Electric and Sichuan Changhong have been selected as national cross-industry and cross-field industrial Internet platforms. 46,000 new 5G base stations have been added, and the home coverage capacity of gigabit fiber optic networks has reached 55 million households. Promote the professionalization and high-end development of productive services such as modern logistics, modern finance, science and technology information, promote the quality upgrade of life services such as trade, culture, sports and tourism, and medical care, and strengthen the leading role of emerging service industries such as big data services, human resources services, ecological and environmental protection services, and professional services.
6. Transportation facilities
Convenient transportation, 48 access channels in and out of Sichuan University, Chengdu International Aviation Hub has an annual passenger throughput of nearly 75 million, ranking third in the country; cargo and mail throughput reached 767,000 tons, ranking sixth in the country, Chengdu-Hong Kong direct high-speed rail trains were officially opened for operation, and the China-Europe Express (Chengdu-Chongqing) maintained the first number of trains in the country.