President Xi Jinping has unveiled China’s plan to build the whole of Hainan island into a pilot international free trade zone (FTZ). He announced the plan while attending a gathering to mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of Hainan province and the Hainan Special Economic Zone in Haikou, the provincial capital. President Xi emphasized that it was a major decision that involves in-depth research and overall planning and underlines China’s commitment to expanding opening up and promoting economic globalization. China welcomes investors from around the world to invest in Hainan, actively participate in the construction of the Hainan free-trade port and share in the opportunities brought by China’s development as well as the achievements brought by China’s reform, he said.

Hainan will become a pilot zone for comprehensively deepening reform and opening-up, for development of the country’s ecological civilization, an international tourism and consumption center and a zone offering services and support for the country’s major strategies. President Xi also announced plans to boost Hainan’s development in specific areas, including the service sectors, information technology, agriculture, and scientific research and innovation, the China Daily reports.

While in Hainan, Xi Jinping visited the planning hall of the Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone in Boao and inspected an array of advanced medical equipment. In Hainan, overseas investors are allowed to set up medical institutions. More imports of medical equipment and pharmaceuticals have been allowed, and foreign doctors are given more leeway to practice. He also made an inspection tour in Sanya and toured the Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, where the manned submersible Deep Sea Warrior is developed. Sanya is also home to the Nanfang Scientific and Research Breeding Base, where super hybrid paddy rice is cultivated.

Hainan should develop the new generation of information technology and digital economy and promote deep integration between the real economy and the internet, the internet of things, big data, satellite navigation and artificial intelligence, Xi said. A new rocket launch center is also located in Hainan. It was Xi’s fourth visit to the island province since 2010.

The island of about 9.3 million people, once considered a backwater of fishermen and poor farmers, is now an example of China’s commitment to the future and has already become a center of tourism and green agriculture. In the past five years, the island’s GDP has increased by an annual average of 8.1% to CNY446 billion in 2017. The number of tourists visiting the island has increased from about 33.2 million in 2012 to over 67 million last year. People from 26 countries can now visit the island visa free via 57 international air routes. The international airports in Haikou and Sanya received over 40 million passengers last year.