Culture gets big boost in Pudong Culture, big, Pudong, boost, gets

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Culture gets big boost in Pudong

　

Cultural promotion will be a key element of Pudong District's plan for the five-year period ending in 2005, district officials said yesterday.

　　"We will stress improve-ments in industries per-taining to entertainment, tourism, media, conventions and sports to ensure that the district's cultural industry rises to international levels," said Tian Sainan, director of the district's Culture, Radio, TV and Film Bureau.

　　Tian said the district will annually budget 200 million yuan (US.1 million) that will be used to foster the publication of books and plays, to increase the volume of books in district libraries and to sponsor cultural events in neighborhood communities.

　　Under the district's five-year plan, cultural "industries" would:

　　* Hold two or three major international conventions, promoting Pudong as an Asia-Pacific convention hub.

　　￡¤Increase annual tourist arrivals from home and abroad from the current 10 million to 21 million by 2005.

　　￡¤Upgrade "several" cultural and entertainment centers to world-class standards to attract more visitors. Ticket revenue should then be able to increase to 15 to 20 percent of the city's total. The cultural centers include the Oriental Cultural Center, a performance hall construction for which will get under way later this year, and the Shanghai Ocean Aquarium, the largest in Asia.

　　￡¤Have publishing houses in the district reach an annual sales revenue of 6 billion yuan in 2005, 5 percent higher than the current figure.

　　￡¤Upgrade sports facilities so that they can be venues for international matches.

　　Several internationally owned sport management companies will be set up to arrange sporting events.