City Introduction of Qinghai, China: Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Region

Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Region

Major Economic Indicators (2007)

Source: Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Region Economic and Social Development Report 2007

Introduction

Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Region is located in the eastern part of Qinghai Province and south of Qinghai Lake. It covers a vast land area of 46,000 sq km and has a population of only 427,900.

Hainan has a complex continental plateau climate with significant geographical differences from low altitude to high altitude. The average temperature of the counties under jurisdiction of Hainan ranges from -4.6℃-7.2℃.

Hainan is rich in natural resources. Available pasture area amounts to 3.3 million sq km, accounting for about 74% of the prefecture’s total land area and 10.4% of the province's total land area. Since the Yellow River runs through five counties of the prefecture, theoretical reserves of electricity total 9.6 million kw. Reserves of copper, tin, mercury, tungsten and marble ranked the first in Qinghai Province. In addition, Hainan benefits from the availability of Tibetan medicine and Tibetan-related tourism.

Hainan currently is not accessible by railways and airports. Transportation in Hainan mainly relies on highways. State Highway 109 (Qinghai-Tibet), State Highway 214 (Qinghai-Yunnan) and the Provincial Highways 101 connect Hainan with outside regions and counties under jurisdiction of the region.  

Economic Features

Hainan realized GDP of RMB 4.1 billion in 2007, representing a rise of 14% year on year. The region's GDP accounted for approximately 5.4% of Qinghai's total and ranked fourth out of eight in the province.

Value-added output of agricultural sector increasing by 14.0% year on year to RMB 1.2 billion in 2007, contributing 30% of the region's GDP. Total output of grain increased by 23.85% year on year, and amounted to 93,900 tons, accounting for approximately 1% of Qinghai Province's total.

In 2007, the value-added output of secondary industry (industry and construction), the largest contributor to the region's economy, amounted to RMB 1.6 billion and accounted for 40% of the region's total. The value-added industrial output generated by the industrial sector reached RMB 849 million, contributing 52.9% to the secondary industry’s total.

Electricity is the most important pillar of the industrial sector. However, due to the decrease of water runoff from the upper reaches of the Yellow River in 2007, the Longyangxia Power Plant’s value-added industrial output fell 12.1% year on year to RMB 378 million.

Milk-related products and carborundum realized output of 19.8 million tons and 35,506 tons in 2007, reflecting growth of 380% and 122.7% year on year, respectively.

In 2007, the service sector generated value-added output of RMB 1.2 billion, contributing 30% of the region's GDP. Wholesale, retail, accommodations and catering are important pillars of the sector. As a whole, they realized value-added output of RMB 191 million, contributing 15.4% to the sector's total. Transportation, warehousing, postal services and telecommunications generated value-added output of RMB 41.4 million, representing a rise of 7.6% year on year.

Tourism is also important for Hainan’s service sector. In 2007, 1.1 million tourists visited the region, while tourism income totaled RMB 149 million, representing a rise of 45% over the previous year.

Cultural Highlights

Hainan is located south of Qinghai Lake and is known for its profound and multi-cultural history. There are 23 minority ethnic groups including Tibetans, Hui, Mongols, Kazakhstanis and Tu, living here. Tibetans account for 57% of the total population.

The various minority ethnic groups retain their own folk customs and live harmoniously and happily in the region.

Tourist Attractions

Taking advantage of the vast agricultural (grazing) lands, Hainan mainly developed farmyard and grazing themed tourism. Tourists are able to enjoy the natural scenery of local agricultural and pastoral lands while at the same time, they can also appreciate local folk songs, dances and culture.

When it comes to local special snacks, hand grabbed mutton, yogurt, milk tea and sheep tendons can be good dishes for tourists to try.