OREANDA-NEWS. The provincial government of Anhui on Tuesday unveiled a plan for development priority zones, aiming to establish a new territory development model in the province by 2020.

The plan, the first of its kind since the founding of the province, will function as a guide to its territory development during the next few years, an official with the provincial reform and development commission said.

Under the plan, the province's urbanization rate will approach 60 percent in 2020, with urban areas to cover a maximum of 5,000 square kilometers and rural living quarters 10,000 square kilometers. Meanwhile, there will be more than 5.69 million hectares and 4.85 million hectares of farmland and timberland, respectively.

The document highlights "more efficient territory development, more coordinated urban and rural development, better ecological environment and more sustainable development".

It comes up with three strategic patterns, one for urbanization involving the Anhui-Section Yangtze River City Belt, Hefei Economic Rim and North Anhui Urban Cluster, one for agriculture concerning fifteen agricultural bases and another for ecological security networks to be created surrounding the Dabie Mountain, in South Anhui and the area between the Huaihe River and the Yangtze River.

Key development zones, the plan says, are to speed up urbanization and industrialization. Covering a total area of 33,500 square kilometers, or 23.9 percent of the province's territory, the zones consist of 41 cities and 8 counties.

As for major crop-growing regions and ecologically functional zones, further development will be limited to ensure food security and harmonize man and nature. They span over an area of 76,500 square kilometers, or 54.6 percent of the province's territory.

The plan also stipulates 17,900-square-kilometer regions, ranging from nature reserves to cultural heritage sites, tourist attractions and wetland, are prohibited from being developed. The province will give adequate protection to these areas, as part of its efforts to preserve biodiversity and promote historical culture.