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Shandong Issues Guidelines to Deepen the Innovation and Upgrading Initiative for Small Towns

Source：Haibao News 09-02-2026 10:00:00

Recently, the Housing and Urban-Rural Development Department of Shandong Province and 11 other departments jointly issued the Opinions on Deepening the Innovation and Upgrading Initiative for Small Towns. Serving as a guiding document for small-town development in the opening year of the 15th Five-Year Plan, it lays out systematic arrangements based on a review of experience from 100 pilot towns during the 14th Five-Year Plan period.

The guidelines specify that each city shall select towns with favorable foundational conditions—not exceeding 10% of its total designated towns—to carry out innovation and upgrading initiatives, and towns that have already participated in the 14th Five-Year Plan pilot program will not be eligible to reapply. The goal is that by 2030, small towns across the province will achieve comprehensive improvements in economic strength, living environment, green development, safety and resilience, and digital governance, thereby supporting urban-rural integration and all-around rural revitalization.

The document sets out four key tasks to promote differentiated industrial development tailored to satellite towns, county-level sub-center towns, and specialized characteristic towns, fostering the "unique branding for each town" initiative. Meanwhile, efforts will be made to optimize the spatial character of town areas, improve public amenities including municipal facilities, education, healthcare, and elderly care services, advance digital and smart governance, address weaknesses in disaster prevention and mitigation, and build a small-town development pattern featuring industry-town integration and ecological livability.