Yang Andi on post-Games development of China's ice and snow economy

Yang Andi, head of the Jilin Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism and a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee, called for comprehensive and increased efforts to further build up China's strength in the ice and snow sector after the end of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics in her proposal to the annual session of CPPCC this year.

Noting China's achievements in developing ice and snow sport in preparation for the Beijing 2022, Yang highlighted that China has fulfilled the commitment of engaging 300 million people in winter sports and that the ice and snow economy is expanding in different dimensions including the number of people engaged, the number of regions developing it and the time of the year available for ice and snow activities.

Yang also listed a number of figures to show the booming development of China's ice and snow sector, including an ice and tourism market of 230 million people, 346 million people participating in ice and snow sports, closely to 2,000 ice and snow venues, and over 2,500 primary and secondary schools offering winter sports programs.

She also noted that industrial chains for ice and snow manufacturing, services, technology and personnel have gradually been established.

Based the achievements, Yang proposed, the country should seek greater development of the ice and snow economy after the Games, which has been proved viable by worldwide experiences.  

According to Yang, after the hosting of the Winter Olympics, the host city and country tended to see a rapid increase in the number of people participating in ice and snow sports, a major improvement in ice and snow infrastructure, a strong boost to the ice and snow culture, and a systematic development of ice and snow industries.

To effectively develop the ice and snow economy after the Beijing 2022, Yang said that sound guidelines and theories should be developed to lead the way.

She also called for the formulation of a national medium- and long-term plan for developing the ice and snow economy, under which the Changchun-Jilin area, the Changbai Mountain-Tonghua area and the Harbin-Yabuli area in northeast China, the Beijing-Chongli area in north China and the Altay Mountains of Xinjiang in northwest China would be developed in a coordinated manner.

In terms of ice and snow culture, Yang suggested integrating its development into the Ice and Snow Silk Road and making it a new way to spread the Chinese voice and stories and promote mutual exchanges and learning among different civilizations.

Yang also called for the establishment of a modern ice and snow economy with ice and snow tourism, sports, culture and equipment at the core and also supported by a number of related industrial sectors including ice and snow technology, personnel, commerce and trade.

Innovations to institutions and mechanisms was another area Yang believed the country should focus on, adding that a national agency should be set up to coordinate and drive efforts.