Han Ximin

1824295095@qq.com

FOR this year’s fall term, a total of 103 newly built, renovated or expanded schools were put into use, offering 107,907 additional admissions. These included nine high schools, 60 primary and middle schools and 34 kindergartens.

The construction of high-standard and quality schools to meet residents’ needs has been the No. 1 project for Shenzhen education authorities.

In 2020, the CPC Shenzhen Municipal Committee and city government unveiled the roadmap and schedules for providing more school seats and set a target to offer nearly 1 million additional school admissions in five years, including 110,000 for high schools, 740,000 for primary and middle schools and 145,000 for kindergartens.

This September, students and teachers from Meili Primary School moved to their newly renovated campus which has three new classes, a new canteen and new places to take naps.

“Previously, I had to take naps at noon care centers outside the school and it wasted my time. Now, I have more time to sleep after lunch at school,” said Ke Guitong, one of the school’s students.

Since the beginning of this year, massive school construction plans have been implemented. The city kicked off construction of 90 primary and secondary schools and 60 kindergartens. This year, 146 schools will be built, renovated or expanded, which will offer 130,000 additional admissions.

Due to Shenzhen high schools’ limited capacity, around half of middle school graduates were unable to study at the city’s public high schools. To address this problem, the city planned to build four high school parks in Longgang, Pingshan and Guangming districts as well as in the Shenshan Special Cooperation Zone. Earlier this year, work on these parks in Longgang, Pingshan and Guangming began. Upon its operation in September 2022, the high school parks will offer 23,700 admissions and will meet residents’ demands.

In the gathering celebrating the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone on Oct. 14, 2020, President Xi Jinping stressed the people-centered philosophy of development and pointed out to ensure people enjoying a happy life is the ultimate goal of all our work.

A beautiful life starts with good health. In the past year, Shenzhen was on the fast track in constructing high-quality hospitals. The No. 8 Affiliated Hospital to Sun Yat-sen University, Longhua District People’s Hospital and Longgang District People’s Hospital were upgraded to 3A-grade hospitals, bringing their total number to 22. Shenzhen has realized its goal of having a regional health center at each subdistrict and a community clinic in each community citywide.

In terms of high-quality development, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, opened its School of Medicine this September. It was the fourth medical school affiliated to universities in Shenzhen following Shenzhen University, Southern University of Science and Technology and Sun Yat-sen University.

On Sept. 26, work started on the Phase II of No. 7 Hospital Affiliated to Sun Yat-sen University in Guangming District. The 3,200-bed hospital was built to enable patients with rare or serious complications to be treated locally in Shenzhen by leveraging Sun Yat-sen University’s resources.

In 2021, Shenzhen has sped up the construction of Shenzhen Second Children’s Hospital, Jihua Hospital, Dapeng Hospital, Proton Oncology Center and started Phase II construction of the University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Hospital, Shenzhen Hospital of Fuwai Hospital of Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Shenzhen Eye Hospital. The city also planned to build an academy of medical sciences which will adopt brand-new mechanisms.

By 2025, these hospitals will offer 82,900 beds and have 55,000 doctors. The numbers of 3A-grade hospitals and community clinics will reach 26 and 900, respectively.

“In the new era, Shenzhen is commissioned to create a new development dynamic of shared common prosperity. Shenzhen has intensified investments in projects relating to its residents’ well-being such as education, health care and housing. This will greatly improve residents’ sense of happiness,” Tao Yitao, director with China Special Economic Zones Research Center of Shenzhen University, said at an interview.