Shenzhen is located at the southern tip of the Chinese mainland and on the eastern bank of the mouth of the Pearl River. It neighbors Hong Kong. Occupying an area of 1,953 square kilometers, the city has a subtropical marine climate with plenty of rain and sunshine and is rich in tropical fruit. By the end of 2010, there were 10.36 million permanent residents, of whom 2.51 million had hukou (household registration).

The brainchild of Deng Xiaoping, the country's first special economic zone was established here in 1980. It has been a touchstone for China's reform and opening-up policy since then.

In less than 30 years, Shenzhen, a tiny border town of 30,000 people in 1979, has grown into a modern metropolis. It established many firsts in the history of world industrialization, urbanization and modernization.

A gateway to the world for China, Shenzhen is one of the most developed cities in China and a city that has grown the fastest.

The city is also the high-tech and manufacturing hub in southern China, the world's fourth-busiest container port, China's fourth-busiest airport and one of the most popular tourist destinations in China. The high-tech, logistics, financial services and cultural industries are mainstays of the city.

In 2009, Shenzhen mapped out plans to promote the development of three new industries - namely biotech, new energy and Internet - which are quickly becoming new engines for the city's economic growth. In 2010, the growth speed of biotech, new energy and Internet industries reached 30%, 24.2% and 29.3% respectively.

Shenzhen is changing its mode of growth. While great attention was put in onto the speed of economic growth in the past, now the emphasis is on the quality of growth.

Shenzhen has taken the path of independent innovation to build a State-level innovation-oriented city. In 2010, the city's number of domestic patent applications reached 49,430, including 23,956 applications for invention patents. It had 9,615 domestic patent authorizations. Its PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) applications numbered 5,584 last year, topping China for the seventh consecutive year.

The city is also well-known for design and has more than 6,000 design companies employing more than 60,000 people in total. On Nov. 19, 2008, Shenzhen was named a member of UNESCO's Creative Cities Network and awarded the title of City of Design by UNESCO.

Shenzhen is a city with unique cultural charm. It has a network of top-class public culture facilities, which allow residents to enjoy thousands of cultural performances. The 631 libraries across the city, large and small, earn Shenzhen the name "city of libraries." A series of cultural events, such as Reading Month, Citizens' Cultural Lecture Room and Creative December, provide rich cultural feasts to residents.

The cultural industry has for years achieved robust growth with an annual rate of at least 15 percent. In 2010, the added value of the cultural industry reached 63.7 billion yuan. Shenzhen is among the leading cities in China in terms of the size and growth rate of the cultural industry. The growth models of "culture + technology," "culture + finance," and "culture + tourism" have come into being.

The annual China (Shenzhen) International Cultural Industries Fair (ICIF) is the largest and most authoritative State-level, international, comprehensive cultural industry exhibition in China. The total turnover and export turnover exceeded 120 billion yuan and 12 billion yuan respectively at the seventh ICIF, making the fair "the No.1 exhibition of Chinese cultural industries."

Shenzhen is an ecological garden city, with half of the total area within a demarcation line for nature protection where construction is banned. The urban greenbelt coverage in developed areas is 45.04 percent. In recent years, it has won prestigious honors, including Nations in Bloom, UNEP's Global Top 500 Laureate Roll of Honor, National Garden City, National Civil City and a special gold prize for ozone protection, from international organizations and the Chinese Government.

Shenzhen is a city of compassion, with a deeply rooted volunteer culture. Voted City Most Favored by Migrant Workers, it motivates Project Care each year in a call for care for disadvantaged groups and has thus been called "a city without winter."

A picturesque coastal city, Shenzhen is a popular tourist destination in South China and has been listed by the Chinese Government as an Excellent Tourist City. It was named one of the world's 31 must-see tourist destinations in 2010 by The New York Times.

Shenzhen is best known for its theme parks. The nature reserves and coastal resorts are also a magnet for world travelers.

Shenzhen will host the 26th Summer Universiade in August 2011, to become the youngest host city in the Games' history. The Universiade is the third international sports competition to be hosted by a Chinese city after the Beijing Olympic Games and the Asian Games in Guangzhou.

Basics of Shenzhen

The development of Shenzhen, a gateway for China to the outside world, is regarded as the epitome of the country's drive to reform and modernization.

Geographic Location

Shenzhen is a coastal city in South China, adjoining Hong Kong. Its longitude lies between 113.46 and 114.37 degrees east and latitude between 22.27 and 22.52 degrees north. Sitting south of the Tropic of Cancer, it is in southern Guangdong Province. Demarcated from Hong Kong by the Shenzhen River in the south, it is bordered by Dongguan and Huizhou in the north, Daya Bay and Dapeng Bay in the east and the Lingding Sea and the mouth of the Pearl River in the west.

Natural Resources

The total area of Shenzhen is 1,952.84 square kilometers.

Shenzhen has more than 310 rivers and streams, which are associated with the hydrographic systems of the Dongjiang River, coastal bays and the Pearl River mouth. There are 220 water conservation projects in the city, including 172 reservoirs storing a total volume of 579 million cubic meters. Shenzhen Reservoir in the east has a total volume of more than 40 million cubic meters. It is the main water source for Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

Shenzhen has 230 kilometers of coastline rich in marine life and products. Deep-water ports have been built at various locations in the city. Several scenic mountains range across Shenzhen, the highest peak Wutong Mountain being 944 meters. The city has rich natural resources, ideal for developing tourism. In the east lie the popular beach resorts of Dameisha, Xiaomeisha and Dapeng Bay. In the west are scenic areas, including the Mangrove Nature Reserve, Inner Lingding Island and Waterlands Resort.

Demographics

There had been migration to southern Guangdong and what is now Shenzhen since the late Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) but the numbers increased dramatically after Shenzhen was established. By the end of 2010, the permanent resident population reached 10.36 million, of which 2.51 million had permanent hukou. The total population that includes migrants reached 13.22 million by the end of 2010.

Migrant Culture

As a city of migrants, Shenzhen is open-minded, tolerant and innovative. It is an ideal place for domestic and international talent to start businesses. It has been voted as China's Most Dynamic City and City Most Favored by Migrant Workers. Shenzhen was named by Forbes' Chinese version as the most innovative city on the Chinese mainland in October 2010. According to a listing by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Shenzhen is the fourth most competitive city in China.

Languages

Shenzhen is the only city in Guangdong in which Mandarin is the dominant language because of the migrants from all over China. Many public service employees, professionals and businesspeople can speak English. Most of the young people speak English and Cantonese. The "Speak. Shenzhen" campaign is conducted across the city to encourage more residents and government employees to learn to speak English.

Climate

Shenzhen has a subtropical marine climate. The weather is generally temperate to mild, with plenty of rain and sunshine. The annual average temperature is 22.4 degrees Celsius. A total of 355 days a year are frost free. The yearly rainfall totals 1,933.3 millimeters and the average number of hours of sunshine is 2,120.5.

Official Trees and Flower

The litchi and mangrove are Shenzhen's official trees and bougainvillea is the official flower.