As its name “Zhaoyuan” indicates, Zhaoyuan Economic and Technological Development Zone “welcomes guests from afar and recruits talents from all directions.” Standing in the northwest of Jiaodong Peninsula and enjoying a total area of 1,433 km² and a coastline of 15 km, the Area has 9 towns, 5 sub-district offices and 1 state-level economic and technological development zone under its jurisdiction, covering 724 administrative villages and a population of 570,000. It ranks among the top in the basic competitiveness of county economy and the top 100 small and medium-sized cities in scientific development in China. Honorary titles that have brought glory to it include National Sanitary City, National Model City of Environmental Protection, National Advanced City of Scientific and Technological Progress, and Top Tourist City of China. In February 2017, Zhaoyuan City established the grand goal of “taking the lead in realizing urbanization in the whole city”. With the vision of creating a regional fortune center with the city’s image as “China’s Gold Capital and a Prosperous Zhaoyuan”, it has delineated the overall layout whose business centers on the national development zone and reaches into Binhai New District and Dongcheng New District, including nine towns and 99 rural communities. By exerting effort in this way, it endeavors to write a new chapter of macrocosm urbanization. 

Zhaoyuan Economic and Technological Development Zone was approved by the Shandong government in 1992 as a province-level development zone, and promoted to a state-level one with approval of the State Council in 2011. It occupies an area of 220 km² and is home to over 150,000 permanent city residents and 1,200-plus enterprises. It has also become the top 100 province-level development zone in Bohai Rim Region in terms of investment environment, science and technology innovation, and circular economy competitiveness, an advanced park open to the outside world, a provincial scientific development demonstration park, and a new district most suitable for living.