Guizhou achieves remarkable success in advancing high-quality development, official says

Guizhou province in Southwest China has achieved remarkable success in advancing high-quality development through a harmonious blend of economic prosperity, improved living standards, and enhanced environmental sustainability, an official said.

Xu Lin, Party chief of the province, made the remarks on Saturday at the opening ceremony of Eco Forum Global Guiyang 2025, which will last until Sunday.

Launched in 2009, the forum is the only national-level international forum in China dedicated to ecological civilization. The event this year is themed "Harmonious Coexistence Between Humans and Nature· Global Collaborative Development for Green Transformation".

Last year, the forest coverage in Guizhou jumped from 47 percent in 2012 to 63.3 percent in 2024, Xu noted.

The annual proportion of days with fairly good air quality - defined as an index below 100 on the 0-500 air quality scale - in the eight leading major cities in the province has remained above 99 percent, he said. And the water quality of all major rivers as they exit the province has consistently stayed at and above Grade III, the third best in the country's five-tier quality system.

He also highlighted the progress Guizhou has made in promoting green productivity tailored to local conditions by integrating green and digital technologies to boost industrial development.

Guizhou currently boasts the largest concentration of super-large data centers worldwide, he shared.

Compared to 560 billion yuan ($78.2 billion) in 2012, he said the province's economic aggregate surged to 2.27 trillion yuan in 2024, with the contributions from the green economy and digital economy reaching 48.8 percent and 45 percent, respectively.

Guizhou has effectively enabled its residents to reap the rewards of green development, he underscored. Thanks to the economic gains derived from the region's healthy ecological environment, millions of individuals in the province have been able to lift themselves out of poverty and attain xiaokang, or moderate prosperity.

"As we embark on a new journey, we will steadfastly prioritize ecological conservation and green development, and make concerted efforts to cut carbon emissions, reduce pollution, pursue green development, and boost economic growth," Xu said.