The Role and Scope of Private Medical Practice in China

Chapter 2. Methodology
Guangdong, situated in the southern-most coastal region of China, has the
distinction of being one of two provinces that were first opened to foreign direct
investments in 1980, and hosting three of China’s four special economic zones. Its
high degree of autonomy to handle its own economic affairs has enabled it to surge
ahead of others economically.
Shanxi is a landlocked province noted for its coal and electric power industry,
situated along the middle reaches of the Yellow River in the western part of north
China, while Sichuan is a largely agricultural province located in the Upper Yangtze
Valley in the southwestern part of the country.
In terms of per capita GDP, Guangdong ranks fifth in China, compared to
Shanxi (seventeenth) and Sichuan (twenty-fifth) (Table 1).
Table 1. Economic development in China by province, 1998
Ranking Province GDP/Per Capita (US$) Population (million)
1 Shanghai 3,433 14.64
2 Beijing 2,246 12.46
3 Tianjin 1,799 9.57
4 Zhejiang 1,367 44.56
5 Guangdong 1,354 71.43
6 Fujian 1,260 32.99
7 Jiangsu 1,218 71.82
8 Liaoning 1,134 41.57
9 Shandong 987 88.38
10 Heilongjiang 917 37.73
11 Hebei 793 65.69
12 Hubei 765 59.07
13 Xinjiang 757 17.47
14 Hainan 732 7.53
15 Jilin 719 26.44
16 Mongolia Interior 616 26.44
17 Shanxi 612 31.72
18 Hunan 602 65.02
19 Henan 573 93.15
20 Chongqing 569 30.6
21 Anhui 556 61.84
22 Jiangxi 545 41.91
23 Qinghai 531 5.03
24 Yunnan 529 41.44
25 Sichuan 527 84.93
26 Ningxia 519 5.38
27 Guangxi 495 46.75
28 Shaanxi 466 35.96
29 Tibet 452 2.52
30 Gansu 420 25.19
31 Guizhou 285 36.58
*Source: China Human Development Report, UNDP, 1999. Statistical information according to
Statistical Yearbook of China, 1998.
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