5. Building a National Cultural Center in the Context of the New Beijing Urban Master Plan

In 2017, Beijing actively implemented the requirement on its strategic position as the capital city and pushed for progress in all aspects of the cultural sector with the aim of building a national cultural center. The Beijing Urban Master Plan (2016–2035) further clarifies the city’s strategic goal of cultural development and building a national cultural center. According to the 2017 ranking of relevant indexes, Beijing ranked 9th in Global Cities Index, the same as in 2016, 13th in Global Power City Index and 7th in global city cultural exchange index. While Beijing ranked first among Chinese cities in all those index rankings, it lagged quite far behind “global cities” like London, New York and Tokyo. In the ranking of overall competitiveness in 2017, Beijing ranked fourth in China for the third consecutive year after Shanghai, Hong Kong and Shenzhen. It was in a leading position in the country regarding cultural development, its position as a national cultural center was further consolidated, and it ranked first regarding the urban environment for innovation and entrepreneurship. Beijing’s city brand development, cultural brand, tourism brand, investment brand and brand communication index were all the best in China, so was its cultural competitiveness index and cultural influence index. It is worth noting that Beijing ranked 4th in the country by cultural soft power index and 13th by cultural soft power public satisfaction index. This implies large room for improvement regarding its endeavor to build a livable city, enhancement of cultural soft power and especially the public satisfaction with cultural service. Centered on the building of a national cultural center, this report gives an overview of Beijing’s development in a series of cultural aspects in 2017, including the protection and inheritance of the historical and cultural city, public cultural service, development of cultural and creative industries and expansion of cultural exchange and communication. It also analyzes Beijing’s overall and cultural competitiveness advantages and weaknesses in the international and domestic city system, and makes suggestions on areas where improvements are needed.