Beijing investing in major infrastructure project in Yunnan
GoKunming / August 09, 2007

Last weekend in Beijing the State Council's Office for Western China Development announced that this year ten major development projects with an investment of more than 151.6 billion yuan were being launched across western China. Of the ten major projects, two are located in Yunnan.

This year work has begun on the new Kunming international airport which is projected to be the third- or fourth-largest in China upon completion in four or five years. Once operational, the airport is expected to greatly enhance Kunming's international connectivity via new routes to Europe, North America, South Asia and Australia.

The other main project in Yunnan underway as of this year is the Dali-Ruili railway, which will extend the existing Kunming-Dali line through Baoshan to Ruili, in western Yunnan on China's border with Myanmar. The line is part of the rail network that will connect Yunnan with major cities in Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia and also with Singapore. The regional rail network is projected for completion by 2015 and is expected to play a major role in the upcoming China-ASEAN Free Trade Area (CAFTA).