Ningbo to build national fishing port-based economic zones

China plans to build two fishing port-based economic zones in Ningbo, a coastal city in East China's Zhejiang province, according to a plan jointly released by the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

The economic zones, based on modern fishing ports, are expected to integrate the fishing industry with urban construction and create industrial chains which may include marine products trade, deep processing, marine medicine, sightseeing and logistics.

According to the National Fishing Port Construction Plan (2018-2025), the two port-based economic zones in Ningbo will be stationed in Fenghua district and Xiangshan county, where the fishing economy is developing well.

Fenghua, home to 37 fishing ports and 3,199 fishing vessels, is able to produce over 380,000 metric tons of marine products a year.

The district plans to further expand its national first-grade port Tongzhao Fishing Port and build an economic zone boasting the integrated development of the fishing industry, commerce and trade, logistics, tourism and the entertainment sector.

Xiangshan, a peninsula county with a sea area of 6,618 square kilometers, is encircled on three sides by the sea with Xiangshan Harbor in the north and Shipu Port in the south. It has 3,984 fishing vessels and 35 fishing ports, which enables the county to produce more than 580,000 tons of marine products a year.

Xiangshan will strive to promote the deep processing of aquatic products, develop marine biomedicine and e-commerce, and build an ocean park and an area featuring a creative fishing industry.

A fishing port in Fenghua district, Ningbo [Photo/Ningbo Fabu WeChat]

An aerial view of a fishing port in Xiangshan, Ningbo [Photo/Ningbo Fabu WeChat]