NEW WINGS: Bole Airport opens to flights (SHEN ZHIJUN)

Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is on a fast track to developing its economy as the Chinese Government lends its support to the Muslim-inhabited region in northwest China.

Devastated by riots in July 2009, the region has now turned the corner. On July 10, the Bole Airport in Bortala Mongolia Autonomous Prefecture, northwest Xinjiang, 50 km south of China's inland port of Alataw Pass to Central Asia, opened to flights, marking the beginning of civil aviation service from the area to other destinations. Experts say the new avenue of air transport can attract more tourists to the already popular tourist destination, which boasts beautiful landscapes. An air route can also boost economic development in Xinjiang.

There is more good news for the region. A massive support package to help Xinjiang was unveiled at a central work conference on the region's development - the first of its kind in 60 years - held in Beijing on May 17-19.

Support measures launched at the conference include a resource tax reform and partnership assistance program.

 Triple hand up

"The combination of three sources of support - Central Government support, assistance from economically developed regions, and Xinjiang's self-development - demonstrates the spirit of unity and common endeavor. It will surely bring people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang closer together," said Hao Shiyuan, Director of the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, in a Xinhua News Agency report.

Tang Yigai, a member of the advisor group of Xinjiang, thinks the measures indicate the Central Government is resolved to improve its work in Xinjiang.

The pilot resource tax reform first launched in Xinjiang is significant.

The tax [revenue] is important in propelling local economic development, said An Tifu, a professor of finance at the Renmin University of China, in an interview with The Beijing News. Xinjiang is abundant in natural resources, but its location has restrained the region's development.

A resource tax is a kind of local tax. Natural gas and oil taxed by price rather than by volume will surely increase local fiscal revenue, An said. These resources are mainly consumed in east China. The trial tax reform can help narrow the income gap between Xinjiang and the eastern regions.

Tang also agreed. Influenced by the global financial crisis and sharp decline of oil prices in the international market, many oilfields in Xinjiang have reduced their output of crude oil, with the region's total output falling from 27.22 million tons in 2008 to 25.18 million tons in 2009, according to Tang. If taxes are levied on prices, the tax revenue for Xinjiang will increase by 10 billion yuan ($1.46 billion) every year.

Another preferential tax policy is for qualified enterprises in Xinjiang's poor regions, which will be exempted from income tax for two years and allowed a 50-percent reduction in the following three years. Tang thinks that this will be conducive to promote development of private companies, especially small and medium-sized ones, to improve the investment environment and increase the income of Xinjiang residents. More importantly, this policy will help increase job opportunities.

As part of the support efforts, a partner assistance program will also be launched, with 19 provinces and municipalities participating.

 The partner assistance program will surely bring opportunities to Xinjiang's development, said Wei Houkai, Deputy Director of the Institute for Urban and Environmental Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, in an interview with The Beijing News. Accumulating financial aid worth 10 billion yuan ($1.46 billion) will not be difficult for the 19 capital-rich regions. However, Wei insists that Xinjiang should establish a long-term mechanism to ensure sustainable growth, and cooperate with other regions.

"Besides the partner assistance program, all the ministries and commissions of the Central Government will also offer their support," Tang said, when interviewed by China News Service. Tang said the Ministry of Education would spend 80 billion yuan ($11.71 billion) within five years to improve the educational infrastructure in Xinjiang.

China is currently formulating general ideas and policies to deepen the Western Development Strategy over the next decade, and by strengthening the opening up process in Xinjiang, the country may find a way different from the practice in eastern areas to continue such efforts.

While implementing the new measures, Xinjiang needs to make full use of the principal role of the market in resource allocation and be able to develop through economic and technological cooperation with other parts throughout the country.