Brief Introduction To Hainan Province

    Hainan Island is the second-largest island in China, after Taiwan. The island faces the Leizhou Peninsula in Guangdong Province across the Qiongzhou Straits. It had a population of seven million by the end of 1994, among whom are some ethnic groups, including the Li, Miao and Hui.

    Its topography is low on four sides and high in the center from which radiate the island's rivers. 20 percent of the island is mountainous,15 percent hilly and 65 percent is plain and tableland. Two major ports, Haikou and Yulin, are along its 1,440-km coastline.

    Hainan Province, known as Qiongzhou in ancient times, has long been under the jurisdiction of Guangdong Province. But in May 1984, the decision was approved to establish the Hainan Administrative District on the island at the Second Session of the Sixth National People's Congress. Under the district's jurisdiction are also the Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha islands in the South China Sea. The district governing body is the Hainan Administrative District's Government under the Guangdong Provincial People's Government. In August 1987, the State Council made a proposal to establish Hainan as a province. In 1988, Hainan Island became China's 30th province and its largest economic zone.

    The Hainan Province administers three cities, 16 counties, as well as the islands and reefs of the Xisha Islands, Nansha Islands and Zhongsha Islands and seawaters around them.

    The province has an area of 34,000 sq km, an average temperature between 22 and 26 degrees centigrade and an annual rainfall of 1,600 to 2,000 millimeters. Hainan has more than 4,000 species of plants, accounting for 15 percent of the country's total, and 600 of them are native to the island. It is estimated that 344 species of birds and 77 kinds of animals dwell in Hainan, of which gibbons, pangoins, rhesus monkeys and civet cats have been put under state protection. The province also boasts 50 types of minerals.

    Location: Hainan Province is situated at the southernmost part of China.

    Area: 34,000 sq km

    Climate: Hainan Island has monsoon tropical climate with annual average temperature 22°c-26°c and annual rainfall 1500-2000mm. More than 300 days of a year are sunny days. Hainan is a good place for escaping cold, relieving summer heat, having holidays and traveling due to above-mentioned climate.

    Provincial capital: Haikou

    Population: 7.87 millions (March 2001)

    Ethnic groups: Han nationality--totaling 84.1 percent of the population--and the rest are the Li, Miao, Hui and other minority nationalities. The Li nationality has a population of 980,400 people, and the Miao, 45,600.

    Major Cities: Sanya

    Agriculture: Tropical high–yielding agriculture of a new kind has risen abruptly and keeps on developing and extending from region to base and towards being industrialized, which has given an impetus to tropical tourist agriculture, ecological agriculture and hi–tech agriculture. A significant base of China has taken its root or is taking shape in Hainan, where cultivations will be centralized such as natural rubber, seed breeding, vegetables and melons growing in winter, tropical fruits, tropical flowers and plants, and marine aquiculture. The base has brought about a great deal of famous farm produce of high quality, and begun its transformation from the superiority of farm produce to that of farm cash crops and to their processing industry. As a result, the status as China's agricultural base in Hainan has been reinforced.

    Industry: Focusing attention on market demand and intensifying both application of new technology and exploitation of superior resources, all these measures have resulted in renovation of traditional industry and rapid growth of newly–developed industry. At present, an industrial complex is beginning to take shape with mainstay of natural gas, chemicals, building materials, beverage, food stuff, medicinal, chemical fibers, textiles, machinery, electronics, metallurgy, information, etc..