A group of foreign reporters embarked on a four-day-long tour in Jining, Shandong province on Oct 17, exploring the city's achievements in protecting traditional culture, replacing old growth drivers with new ones and rural revitalization over 40 years of reform and opening up.

Nearly 20 reporters from the world's major media organizations, including BBC, Russia's Rossiya Segodnya, South Korea's JoongAng Ilbo, Thailand's Nation Multimedia Group, the Reporter and the Daily Monitor Newspaper from Ethiopia, the Nepali Times, the Jahon Information Agency from Uzbekistan, the Elegant Magazine from Sri Lanka, Pakistan's Daily Jang, Geo News, and Express Tribune, Tajikistan's Avesta News Agency, the Public Security Newspaper and the Vientiane Times from Laos, the Viet Nam News and the MONTSAME News Agency, joined Chinese domestic media for the tour entitled "40 Years of Reform and Opening-up: Foreign Media Focus on Jining".

Yan Jianbo, deputy Party secretary of Jining, delivered a speech at the opening ceremony. 

He said that the city has made great achievements in the economic and social development in 40 years of reform and opening-up. 

According to Yan, Jining's GDP increased by 290 times while local fiscal revenue increased by 257 times. Incomes of urban and rural residents increased by 87 times and 189 times respectively.

Jining has developed into a modern industrial city with a number of national industrial bases such as coal chemical industry, engineering machinery, special automobile, biotechnology, new textile materials and optoelectronics industry.

Yan added that 51 Fortune 500 companies have invested in 92 projects in Jining. 

"The event offers a great opportunity to promote Jining," said Yan.

Qufu city, Yanzhou district, Jining National High-tech Industrial Development Zone and Jiaxiang county will be the major stops during the media trip. 

Yan Jianbo, deputy Party secretary of Jining, delivers a speech at the opening ceremony on Oct 17 in Qufu, county-level city in Jining, Shandong province. [Photo/jnnews.tv]

Foreign reporters attend the opening ceremony of the discovering Jining media trip on Oct 17 in Qufu, Shandong province. [Photo/jnnews.tv] 

The urban landscape of Jining, Shandong province. [Photo/China Daily] 

Jining has achieved new progress in city construction. [Photo by Yang Guoqing/China Daily]