The Jinjingwan business operation center is a new landmark in the Pingtan Comprehensive Experimental Zone in Fujian province. [Photo by Nian Wangshu/China Daily]

As an island county located off the east coast of Fujian province, Pingtan is the closest place on the Chinese mainland to the main island of Taiwan.

Pingtan county, also known as the Pingtan Comprehensive Experimental Zone, is part of the China (Fujian) Free Trade Zone that focuses on further opening up cross-Strait communication.

As a gateway to Taiwan, Pingtan has established shipping routes to Taiwan's north, central and southern regions, as well as direct routes to major cities like Taipei, Taichung and Kaohsiung. It takes just nine hours to transport fresh agricultural and seafood products from Kaohsiung to Pingtan.

Pingtan has rolled out a series of innovative and preferential policies to attract Taiwan enterprises and residents to settle in the area, and it has done many "firsts" in China. For instance, it's the first mainland county to employ Taiwan residents in the public sector and State-owned enterprises to explore a model of cross-Strait co-governance.

Pingtan is the largest island in Fujian province. Its beautiful natural scenery and the local culture has been well preserved, and its many wetlands make Pingtan a paradise for birds. Thanks to its long winding coastline and abundant wetland resources, Pingtan is a perfect habitat for migratory birds to rest or forage during the winter-to-spring period.

For Pingtan, the blue sea, silver beach and the green water and mountains are important environmental foundations for its sustainable development, and they are advantageous resources for supporting high-quality growth. The zone is seeing a boom in tourism development as it's actively building itself into an international tourism island.

The zone is also home to emerging businesses such as information technology, cross-border e-commerce, shipping express mail, film, television, culture and finance.

In 2022, Pingtan's gross domestic product (GDP) registered about 36.77 billion yuan ($5.34 billion), an increase of 3.6 percent compared to that in 2021, according to official statistics. The zone's combined import and export value in 2022 was 20.49 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 6.1 percent.

Shipaiyang, one of the natural wonders in Pingtan, Fujian province, is a large rock formation shaped like two large ships sailing on the sea. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

An industrial zone for Taiwan businesses in Pingtan, Fujian province attracts many investors and provides various services. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]