Located
at the southern estuary of the Zhujiang Delta in Guangdong
Province, Zhuhai has an advantaged setting between the two Special
Administrative Regions, Macau
to the south and Hong
Kong to the east across the South China Sea. The city boasts its
amiable climate, beautiful beaches and convenient transportation, and
has been entitled as the Model City for Environment Protection by the
United Nation.
Zhuhai has no special place in history:
It was nothing more than a small agricultural town under changing
administration. Things changed in 1979 with Deng Xiaoping's economic
policies and the economic boom began. In the following year, approved
by the fifth People's Congress, Zhuhai, along with other three cities
(Xiamen, Shenzhen
and Shantou) was established as a Special Economic
Zone (SEZ).
Zhuhai encompasses three separate
townships. Gongbei on the border with Macau, is the most thriving
place and the major tourist area. Jida district to the north-east is
where harbor, as well as holiday resorts locate, and finally Xiangzhou
district to the east-which is also where the airport locates. Though
full of new offices, immensely wide roads and tasty economic
incentives, Zhuhai still lags behind Shenzhen (the SEZ on the border
with Hong Kong).
But Zhuhai is definitely growing. A large
amount of foreign capital is being invested and there is a significant
increase in visitors both from inland and Macau or Hong Kong. Local
tourist sights includes the New
Yuan Ming Palace and Jiuzhou
Cheng. Zhuhai is also the venue of an annual air show. Off the
coast there are many small islands and Zhuhai itself has a few pretty
beaches.
Zhuhai's mineral resources are quartz
sand, granite and building sand. The Wanshan Fishery is one of the
biggest in Guangdong. Major industries include electronics, food,
chemical industry and textiles. Local specialties are seafood (crab,
lobster, oyster, squid), fruit and flowers.
