We shall carry out the strategy of vitalizing the city with science and technology and strengthening the city with talents, build a fairly large cultural city, and promote an all-around, coordinated development of the economy and social undertakings.

Part 1. To Build an Innovative City

In line with the guidelines of “Independent Innovation, Leaping forward in Key Areas, Support for Development and Leading Future”, we shall keep in practice the NO 1 Project on Human Resources, aiming to set up a sci-tech innovation system geared to the demand of social and economic progress. The innovation system shall be rational in structure, multifarious, flexible in mechanism, and full of vitality.
To set up a platform for sci-tech innovation: We shall advance the construction of R&D institutions with enterprise as the backbone, focusing on industry-academy-research work, give substantial support for enterprises and trades to establish engineering centers, encourage enterprises to jointly set up key laboratories, research institutes and post-doctorial stations with higher institutions home and abroad. We shall accelerate the steps in intensifying key laboratories in higher institutions and sharing of them and encourage social resources to take part in the construction of laboratories, especially state-level and provincial-level ones, thus to form the city’s innovative sources of independent intellectual properties. We shall also speed up the building of research and development parks of the city, to launch incubation bases for R&D establishments and bases for high-tech talents to start up business.
To carry out key sci-tech projects: Centering on industrial upgrading and key technologies of public services, we shall organize to tackle key scientific and technological difficulties, trying to grasp a number of key technologies in biology, information, neo-materials and marine fields and develop a number of independent intellectual properties. We shall press forward the so-called “Double 10 & Double 100” Project, and carry out the Chunmiao Program and the High-tech Star Program.
To improve sci-tech service system: we shall give full play of the supporting impact of online technical markets on industry-academy-research work, by building platform for sci-tech information service and a number of sci-tech innovation service centers. We shall encourage technical personnel and social forces to set up private sci-tech intermediary agencies oriented to SMEs. Ningbo shall also set up digital libraries of sci-tech information, carry out intellectual property and technical standardization strategies and cultivate technical markets. It will go on protecting intellectual property and building a national demo city in protection of intellectual property. We shall deepen innovation on the technical system, making full use of the fundamental role of market in technical resources allocation and adding engine force and vitality to innovation.
To increase input in technical innovation: an multiple system for technical input shall be set up in Ningbo, which takes the government input as the lead, corporate input as the mainstay and market financing as the support. Ningbo shall guarantee the financial technical input shall not grow slower than regular revenues of the counterpart level. We shall set up sci-tech investment venture funds and organize to launch venture investment companies. The city plans to set aside 1.5 % of the GDP for R&D and for experimentation.

Part 2. To Prioritize Education Development

The city shall carry out quality education in an all-around way, promote an even development of elementary education and lifelong education of citizens, and speed up the building of service-type education system with local features and vitality.
To advance the balanced development of elementary education: Ningbo shall popularize the 15-year education in a high-profile way, and the free 9-year compulsory education as well. It shall facilitate the sharing of quality education resources to achieve an all-around development of students. A new round of school distribution readjustment will be initiated, so as to advance the standardization construction of primary and middle schools as well as kindergartens. Efforts shall be made to better the schooling conditions for kids of migrant workers and to create a fair environment of learning for them. By 2010, the school attendance rate of senior high schools shall reach 98% and that of compulsory education 100%.
To raise education quality of higher institutions: We shall extend in a moderate way the scale of higher education, improve the structure and raise the education quality. The North Higher Education Park shall be completed. Concentrated efforts shall be made to turn Ningbo University into a local key university of China. We shall do well the Sino-foreign cooperation education projects, especially the Nottingham University Ningbo Campus. We shall devote major efforts to developing a number of distinctive higher institutions, disciplines and specialties that can meet the needs of economic development and are line with the city functions. We shall maintain a steady development of undergraduate education and accelerate the development of post-graduate education.
To develop vocational education and adult education: The city shall put vocational education at a prominent position, with focus on the development of secondary vocational education. To be in line with the needs of economic and social development of the city, we shall reform the teaching methodology of higher education and update the pedagogical contents, so as to foster multi-level pragmatic or skilled talents. The city shall set up 10 field work bases that integrate the pre-job training and in-service training, to improve the training system of vocational education. We shall develop community education, improve adult education and expand channels for self-taught study, so as to meet people’s demand for qualification raise and the rising education consumption.
To deepen comprehensive educational reform: By sticking to the principle of “government running as the backbone”, Ningbo shall encourage and support education undertakings to be undertaken by individuals or private businesses, thus to shape a multiple school-running system. It shall set up a sound system for education input, increase the government’s input in elementary education and encourage the flow of social funds into higher institutions and vocational schools. Meanwhile, the city shall step up the urban-rural integrated development in education sector, with focus on the elementary education in rural areas. Schools of all levels should innovate the education mode and improve the examination and evaluation system, with stress on the development of student’s innovativeness and practical ability.   

Part 3. To Build Talent Highland

Ningbo shall enhance the ideology that talent comes the No.1 importance, proactively carry out the strategy of strengthening the city with talents, and advance the drive of turning the city into an open port and a free port of entrepreneur spirit and speed up the process of building a talent highland at the southern flank of the Yangtze River Delta.
Projects cultivating talents: The city shall carry out the project of cultivating party and government officials so as to reinforce the governance capability, implement the entrepreneur training project so as to foster a team of entrepreneurs that are good at business operations, market and pioneering. The government shall implement the Bai-Qian-Wan Foreign-related Human Resources Training Project, High-ranking Professionals Training Project and Rural Practical Talents Cultivation Project, hoping to bring up a great number of talents that are in want in the social and economic development.
To double efforts introducing talents: While laying equal emphasis on cultivation and introduction, we shall double the efforts in introducing talented people, especially those that are in want in Ningbo, such as talented people in technologically innovation, international management, social sciences and modern services, top-ranking talents, practical technicians in rural areas. We shall keep staging the “High-Ranking Talents Fair” and “China (Ningbo) Talents Week” and the “Yongjiang Scholars” Program so as to improve the platforms for talent introduction. Ningbo shall take an active part in the integrated development of human resources of the Yangtze River Delta, attracting more talented people in the neighboring cities to Ningbo. Meanwhile, we shall step up efforts to introduce professionals and talented people from abroad.
To improve innovative talents working mechanism: we shall advance the market-based allocation of human resources and eliminate the institutional barriers to talent flow. We shall deepen the personnel system reform and set up a scientific achievement assessment system. We shall set up a classified administration system (government organs, enterprises and institutions) and establish a sound mechanism on talent evaluation, selection and appointment and incentive–based allocation. We shall gradually develop a personnel selection system of “the capable take important posts, the ordinary and the mediocre refraining from key posts”, trying to nurture a personnel environment that is good for outstanding talents to come out and to better fulfill themselves.  

Part 4. To Flourish Culture Undertakings

In accordance with the guideline of building a fairly-large cultural city, Ningbo shall exert great efforts to tap its own historical and cultural heritage, introduce fine cultural achievements from outside, prosper the cultural undertakings in an all-around way, and speed up the development of culture as an industry.
To flourish cultural sector: Ningbo shall carry out four cultural projects (premium cultural works, cultural brand, cultural position, and cultural position), to increase the supply of public cultural products. It shall encourage the creation of premium works of profundity, fine workmanship, exquisite flavor or that can bring good benefits. We shall launch diversified mass cultural activities to meet the growing demand for cultural life. We shall tap and sort out the Hemudu Neolithic Culture, East Zhejiang School of Learning, Private Libraries, Business Culture, and the butterfly-love folktale of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, to display the long history and culture of the city. Ningbo City shall reinforce the protection on historical relics, old buildings and old street blocks, famous towns and villages, trying to inherit and carry on the folk culture and customs. Particular emphasis shall be laid on the applications of Liangzhu’s Butterfly Love Legend and the Marine Silk Road for the recognition as world heritage. Meanwhile, great importance shall be attached to annals study and to the socialized archive services.
To develop cultural industry: Substantial support shall be given for traditional cultural industry. Efforts should be also made to strengthen the advantageous cultural undertakings and develop new undertakings as well. The city shall exert great efforts to make better the cultural sectors of press, radio and TV, cultural recreation, Internet information, tourism-convention-exhibition, trading of art works, sports service, production and marketing of sports and cultural products, etc., so as to shape a cultural framework with distinctive features, rational structure, and good competitive edge. It shall make cultural industry another growth point of the local economy. By integrating and marketing non-governmental cultural sources, Ningbo shall develop a number of culture industrial blocks or clusters and culture industrial groups that are of good prospect, large scale and sharp competitive edge. Meanwhile, the city shall introduce some good, healthy cultural projects with more sci-tech ingredients from other places or countries, so as to develop media for intercultural communication and melting.
To enhance construction of cultural facilities: The city government shall build a number of modern cultural and mass cultural facilities, with the three-river cultural corridor as the axis and the large-scale facilities as the focus. The majors tasks to do include the Donghai Mingzhu （East Sea Bright Pearl）Project, the Six-One Village Cultural Program and the 15-mintue Cultural and Sports Service Rim Project, etc. . The government shall reinforce the construction of grass-roots cultural facilities, aiming to form a cultural facility network of rational layout, complementarity and complete functions that have a rational division of functions of public good and benefits yielding.

Part 5. To Develop Public Health Services

Centering upon raising the general level of people’s health, Ningbo shall speed up the development of health care services in both rural and urban areas, trying to solve the problems of Difficulty in Seeing a Doctor and Soaring Costs of Treating Diseases, and make people enjoy fair and convenient medical services.
To set up a sound public healthcare system: With emphasis on improving the Six-in-One function of township hospitals and community clinics, Ningbo shall set up a sound disease control and early warning system and a contingency rescue system for disease breakouts. The city shall set up a public health emergency headquarters, an information platform and network system under the city disease control center, to ensure first aid teams to rush to the spot of emergency breakouts in 15 minutes. It will improve the monitoring and reporting mechanism for epidemic breakouts. We shall keeping doing well the work on preventing and treating HIV-Aids, TB, hepatitis and bilharziasis, as well as endemic diseases.
To make more efforts to develop health care services in urban communities and in rural areas. We shall allocate the health care resources in communities in a reasonable way, highlighting the health care function of residential communities. We shall set up two-tiered urban medicare system, gradually forming the structure of “minor diseases treated within communities, serious illness treated in hospitals”. To strengthen the rural health care services, Ningbo shall carry out in an all-around way the Bringing Health to Farmers Project by improving the rural medicare conditions. It will consolidate the county-township-village (Three-tiered) health care system and network in rural areas.
To reinforce the healthcare infrastructure construction: Ningbo shall increase input in construction of 10 large medicare projects. It will build the First Hospital’s extension project in East Ningbo and the Fifth Hospital; expand the Second Hospital, the Women and Children’s Hospital, the Sixth Hospital and the Donqian Lake Hospital. Besides, the TCM Hospital will be relocated elsewhere. By 2010, the newly added beds in hospitals will total 10,000 and every 1,000 people will have 2.68 doctors on average, which will basically meet the demand of all sorts of people.
To deepen medical care reform: Ningbo shall advance the medicare reform, reinforce and deepen the tiered running of healthcare services. It shall strengthen the backbone role of government in public health and basic medicare services. It shall increase input in public health services, trying to help raise the service quality. It will slacken the control on market access and advance the reform in public medical institutions, regulate the medical conduct and improve the service. The government shall set up a sound pricing mechanism for medicines and services and straighten out the drug production and circulation order, doing the utmost to bring down the prices of medicines, and thus to solve the problems of the problems of Difficulty in Seeing a Doctor and Soaring Costs of Treating Diseases.

Part 6. To Advance Development of Sports

We shall advance the coordinated development of mass sports, competitive sports, and sports industry. We shall improve our capacity of providing public sport services and raise the comprehensive strength of Ningbo in competitive sports. We shall exert great efforts to make the city a regional sports center, a central city of sports events in the southern flank of the Yangtze River Delta and a city strong in sports too.
To construct a citywide fitness system: the city shall advance the Urban Residents’ Fitness Project and Farmers’ Well-off Sports Project. It will build 2000 paths (outlets) for physical exercise, to make the coverage in urban communities and rural communities reach 98% and 80% respectively. Mass fitness campaigns will be waged, to make the proportion of population doing regular physical exercise and those with up-to-standard physic reach 50% and 85% respectively. A large number of mass sports facilities will be set up, including county (city)-level sports centers, to form a three-tiered (city-district-community) network of sports facilities.
To elevate the level of competitive sports: Ningbo shall carry out the Adding Splendor to 2008 Olympics Program and develop some advantageous competitive sport items. It will raise the running of one sports team, one school and four bases of sports. We shall raise the training scale, raise the quality and quantity of athletes sent to the provincial or national teams. The City shall host sports events well under the principle of “Guided by Government, Organized by Associations, Wide Participation and Market-based Operation”, trying to forge prestigious sports events and spread the radiating effect of the city in sports.
To cultivate sports industry and guide people in sports consumption: Great efforts shall be made to develop sports shows, sport training and recreation sports, and to tap intangible sport assets and encourage consumption in sports.