(TibetanReview.net, Jan11’20) – Along with earmarking 8.6 billion yuan ($1.3 billion) to initiate the construction of 26 characteristic towns and introducing foreign investment and social capital for the towns’ development, the local Chinese government of Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) is to greatly expand the region’s tourism income stream this year, reported China’s official Xinhua news agency Jan 9 and chinadaily.com.cn Jan 11.
The Xinhua report said that with over 1.07 million residents living in cities and towns, urbanization in TAR had reached 32 per cent.
With regard to tourism, the chinadaily.com.cn report said that while entry tickets at major attractions was the current mainstay of tourism income stream thus far, this will be greatly expanded to an integrated, year-round industrial chain that would include restaurants, hotels, transportation, entertainment and the arts.
“In 2019, we will continue the work of building Tibet into an important world tourism destination and promote our brand, The World’s Third Pole,” Qizhala chairman of the regional government, was quoted as saying in his work report to ongoing third session of the 11th regional legislature.
The chinadaily.com.cn report cited Sonam Nyima, director of the TAR housing and urban-rural development bureau, as saying the bureau would give priority to improve infrastructure and public service facilities in cities and towns and support the development of the “night economy” in the regional capital of Lhasa in the next step.
Qizhala has said that nearly all the villages in the region were linked to 4G networks with fibre-optic cables and broadband internet services last year.
The central Chinese government was stated to have invested more than 68.6 billion yuan ($9.9 billion) in infrastructure construction in the TAR in 2019.
Total fixed-asset investments in the TAR were stated to be set to rise by five per cent this year.
