Shihezi

Shihezi (Chinese: 石河子; Pinyin: Shíhézǐ; Uyghur: شىخەنزە / Xihənzə) is a sub-prefecture-level city in northern Xinjiang. Its population is about 553,000 (2004), with the majority of the residents being Han Chinese and minorities making up 5.4% of the population.

History

Farms surrounding Shihezi fueled the development of the city. These quasi-military structured farms produce materials for the factories that have been the economic driver of the city. In 1974 Shihezi became a city.

Economy

Nowadays textile and food industries are the most important in Shihezi. Railway connection to Wusu and Ürümqi skirts the city, while a United Nation economic development project provided high quality highway systems for the city. Textile industry is the primary employment, although international trade environment on textiles has brought in fluctuations in employment. As a hub to surounding farms, the city's destiny is currently tied with theirs. Sugar beets are cultivated near Shihezi. Cultivation of cotton in the farms was accelerated in 1990's and now dominates the economy.

External links

[Shihezi economic development zone] (in Simplified Chinese)
[Shihezi party politics public information network] (in Simplified Chinese)

Prefecture-level divisions of Xinjiang

'''Prefecture-level cities:	Karamay \| Ürümqi
'''Prefectures:	Aksu \| Hami \| Hotan \| Kashgar \| Turpan \| Altay¹ \| Qoqek¹
'''Autonomous prefectures:	Bayin'gholin \| Börtala \| Changji \| Ili \| Kizilsu
'''Sub-prefecture-level cities:	Alar \| Shihezi \| Tumushuke \| Wujiaqu
¹ Part of Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture

List of Xinjiang County-level divisions

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