Ever since China opened up to the world in 1980's, the Shanghai Municipal Government, led by the Communist Party of China and the State Council, makes great effort to build the city into an international economic, financial, trade and shipping center. With the cooperation and hardwork of Shanghai people, the city is progressing to its goal as a global metropolitan. The new team of leaders of the Shanghai government took office in February 2003. "The power of the government is entrusted by the people; the interest of people is above all," as Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng promise in his inaugural. Guided by the Shanghai Party Committee, the city's new leadership vows to strictly perform its official duties; to make significant progress in self-improvement, and to intensify the shift of its role from administrative to public service. The Shanghai government will build itself into a service government that would share with the people all their happiness and troubles; a solid responsible government that is efficient, honest and diligent; a law-abiding government that respects legal system and rules strictly and impartially.

Shanghai will bring 6 types of lands into the reserve scope subject to the local measures for land reserve

11/19/2004

The local Measures of Shanghai Municipality for Land Reserve reviewed and adopted by the executive meeting of the municipal government will formally come into force since August 1st, 2004 in Shanghai, Spokesperson of the Municipal Government Jiao Yang announced at the news release conference of the municipal government on June 23rd, 2004.
Jiao emphasized that the supply of land resources shall meet not only the reasonable needs in space in a shorter time of period but also the long-term needs for the sustainable development in the future. It is impossible for the market itself to form the reasonable and effective coordination mechanism. Accordingly, the government shall, during the resource allocation and re-allocation at the first-class market of land resources, establish the land reserve mechanism and give full play to the function of such mechanism in order to balance the land use needs in the near future and far future. This local Measures is formulated subject to guidelines of the applicable state laws and the Notice on Reinforcement of Management of the State-owned Land Assets and in consideration of Shanghai's practical situations.
Land reserve referred herein by Shanghai means any and all conducts by the government at the municipal/district (county) level where it, subject to the overall land use plan, urban plan and land reserve programme, entrusts the land reserve institution to reserve lands expropriated, retrieved, purchased or reclaimed from marshes according to law through compensation resettlement for land expropriation, compensation resettlement for relocation of residents or necessary fundamental construction, and to deliver such lands subject to the land supply programme, according to Jiao's explanation. The non-profit land reserve institution established the municipal/district (county) government shall, upon entrustment by the government, be responsible for land reserve within the scope of municipal/district (county) area. The special institution approved by the municipal government may, within the scope of the specific area (e.g. area for 2010 Shanghai World Expo, development zones on both sides of the Huangpu River, etc.) reserve land.
According to the current provisions, there are 6 types of lands definitely listed into the scope of reserve. They are lands reclaimed from tidal flat and accepted upon due check, the original state-owned lands for agricultural use that will be transformed into operational lands used for building according to the certain plan, the original transferred state-owned land that will be transformed into operational lands used for building according to the certain plan, the original rural collectively owned lands that will be assigned after expropriation according to the certain plan, the idle state-owned lands retrieved by the land administration authority according to law, and other state-owned lands reserved for implementation of the urban planning by the municipal government.
This Measures will, upon formulation and promulgation, play an important role in the following three aspects, Jiao added. Firstly, the strength of government's regulation and control over the land market can be tuned up. Secondly, the land supply mode can be bettered by transforming the right to use the state-owned land from "rough land assignment" into "developed land assignment" in order to enhance the transparency of land costs. And thirdly, the government's investment into the land and benefit from the added value can be balanced.

The Shanghai government 2006