Urban renewal beyond economic growth

A city can be compared to a vibrant living organism, with its developmental process mirroring metabolism, which yields energy leading to transformation, enhancement and renewal. Urban renewal functions as both a self-regulating mechanism and an externally driven upgrading, primarily aimed at preventing, mitigating as well as reversing urban decay.

In 2011, China's urbanization rate surpassed 50 percent, reaching 67 percent by 2024, marking the transition to a new stage of development focusing on people-centric and quality-driven growth. As for China's new-type urbanization, urban renewal programs are now embracing innovative paradigms that redefine sustainable urban transformation. The country now pursues a transformative path anchored in people-centric development and sustainable progress.

Urban renewal has played an important role in China's socioeconomic advancement and in forging a new development pattern. China has a total of 66.2 billion square meters of existing urban housing, with municipal pipelines extending over 3.6 million kilometers, 230,000 municipal roads, and 90,000 bridges, indicating a significant demand for renovation and reconstruction. In 2024, China implemented over 60,000 urban renewal projects with a total investment of about 2.9 trillion yuan ($404.2 billion).