Tibet : 30% Urban Residents in 2020

According to the statistics of the Tibet Autonomous Region’s officials, the province’s urbanization rate will reach 30% by 2020. This corresponds to 280 000 new urban residents in the region, which up to now has been one of the least populated and most rural regions of China. There are currently 740 000 urban residents in the region.

The regional authorities’ strategy is to reinforce the flourishing local economy of existing small urban centres by improving the quality of public services in order to attract urban citizens and companies, and avoid their uncontrolled sprawl over the entire Tibetan plateau. The government hopes to thus manage this urbanization, favoring a more “human centered” approach that is more “respectful of the environment”, two critical elements emphasized in China’s New National Urbanization Plan 2014-2020.