Qingdao makes the list of “Happiest Cities in China”

The list was determined under the 2020 China’s Happiest Cities Survey and Selection program which, involving more than one billion participants, is recognized as the most influential survey on cities in the country.

Themed “Happy and Moderately Prosperous Cities for the People”, this year’s survey and selection focused on cities’ initiatives to tap into the country’s “dual circulation” development strategy as well as efforts to improve local governance and accelerate upgrading of city functions for the purpose of building a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way and achieving high-level development, aiming to promote good practices of happy cities with high-quality development. The “Happiest Cities in China” were selected through big data analysis, questionnaire surveys, review of application documents, field surveys and expert evaluation.

Following Chinese President Xi Jinping’s instructions on Qingdao’s development, which are to “elaborately organize an event to energize the city”, build a modern international metropolis, provide a new platform for Belt and Road international cooperation and integrate into the ecological protection and high-quality development at Yellow River basin, Qingdao is enhancing efforts to drive higher-level opening-up for higher-quality development, and has seen increasing rise in happiness and livability indices.

In recent years, the CPC Qingdao Committee and the People’s Government of Qingdao have been endeavoring to increase local citizens’ sense of happiness by improving urban facilities and offering more considerate services. The city launched the “Burning Passion to Contribute to Development of Qingdao” campaign early this year to motivate local cadres to improve their professional proficiency so that they can better serve the city’s development, and is developing fast toward an open, modern, vigorous and fashionable international metropolis. Moreover, fiscal investment for the benefit of local people has been expanded, and the local urban governance system and capacity have been continuously improved. Thanks to that, the city has seen higher and higher reputation and appeal, and the people have acquired higher senses of gain, happiness and safety.

“As an important central city in the coastal area of China and an international port city, Qingdao ranks top in terms of living quality, city attractiveness, educational resources and other aspects,” Dou Dejing, head of Big Data Lab and Business Intelligence Lab at Baidu Research, said when giving a big data-based analysis of Qingdao’s advantages in the survey and selection program.