(TibetanReview.net, Mar16’26) – China said Mar 15 that the frontier regions of the People’s Republic of China, especially Tibet and East Turkestan (Xinjang), had assumed a more prominent role in Beijing’s 2026-2030, 15th Five-Year Plan to build a unified domestic market, strengthen energy security and expand opening up, due to their strategic importance.
Chinese analysts say that by featuring them in core sections on transport, energy, digital infrastructure and regional integration, Beijing is closely weaving these frontier regions into China’s modernization tapestry, reported China’s official globaltimes.cn Mar 15.
In the section on transport, the plan calls for stronger railways and feeder airports in western regions, better road networks in border areas, and improved cross-border transport connectivity.
“When more border area road networks are incorporated into national-level planning, it signifies the integration of frontier infrastructure into the country’s broader transport system,” Penpa Lhamo, deputy director of the Xizang Academy of Social Sciences, has said. “That is important for extending the unified domestic market across the full national space.”
The report said the plan’s energy strategy also propels the remote regions of Xinjang and Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) to the forefront of China’s green energy expansion.
It said the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030) is expected to inject further momentum into the region’s green power development. Tibet plays vital role in China’s green power development agenda in both production and transmission.
It calls for continued development of major new energy bases in Xinjiang, the upper Yellow River region and the Hexi Corridor, outlining new power transmission channels for clean energy bases in frontier regions including Xinjiang, Xizang and Gansu Province, the report said, using the Sinicized names for East Turkestan (Xinjiang) and TAR (Xizang)
The report noted that in terms of public services, the plan urges more investment in education and healthcare in border areas, pointing to a shift from scattered projects toward more integrated public service systems. This apparently referred to China’s much-criticized colonial-style boarding school system for Tibetan children and others.
“China is not choosing between a high-tech future and frontier development,” Yang Fuqiang, head of the Institute of Sociology at the Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences, has said. “It is bringing the two together, making the frontier an integral part of its modernization drive.”