City profile: Chongqing

Abstract

Chongqing, the largest city in south-west China, was the nation's wartime capital in the 1940s. For the past 50 years or so, Chongqing has deteriorated due to its low priority assigned by both central and provincial governments in their development plans. Recently, in 1997, Chongqing was designated as the fourth Municipality directly under the Central Government (MCG). By so doing, the central government hopes that Chongqing will be an economic centre serving the needs of south-west China and an engine driving the growth of China's vast western region. The revitalization of Chongqing depends on the economic development of China's western region, while the prosperity of China's western region..