Central China’s Rise: Building a New Framework for Sustainable Development and Innovation

Opening New Chapters with Steady Progress | Crossing Energy Levels! How is the Central Region Rising as a New “Pivot” with Vibrant Colors?

As we move forward, 2026 marks the beginning of the 15th Five-Year Plan and is a crucial starting point for the comprehensive construction of a modern socialist country. Various regions are invigorating their efforts and showcasing dynamism. Central Broadcasting Network has specially planned the series “Opening New Chapters with Steady Progress” to highlight the resilience and determination of regions over the past five years, reflecting the economic strength, scientific power, and comprehensive national strength that have reached new heights. This initiative aims to gather momentum for a strong start to the 15th Five-Year Plan.

“Letting children interact with technology firsthand is more vivid than any textbook.” Mr. Zhang, who brought his child to experience the humanoid robots at the 7S store in Wuhan’s Optical Valley, remarked. As the first humanoid robot 7S store in the country, it has welcomed over 18,000 visitors and generated over 600,000 yuan in revenue from sales, rentals, and various experiential services in just two months. This emerging “future scenario” is a striking example of the profound transformation of development momentum in Hubei since the 14th Five-Year Plan.

Over the past five years, Hubei has not only steadily expanded its economic scale, with its GDP surpassing 6 trillion yuan, but has also significantly enhanced its technological innovation capabilities, strengthened green development, and highlighted its comprehensive hub advantages. This marks a profound shift from traditional factor-driven growth to an innovation-driven approach.

As the blueprint for the 15th Five-Year Plan unfolds, Hubei will deeply implement strategies for energy level leaps, innovation leadership, hub enhancement, and a beautiful Hubei, among others. This will facilitate a qualitative improvement and reasonable growth of the economy, accelerating the emergence of a more vigorous and robust central region.

Integration of Industry and Technology: Building a Strong Engine for Innovation

“Inspection drones operate continuously through an aerial wireless charging network, warehouse robots freely move between shelves while continuously charging, and smartwatches and computers achieve contactless charging anywhere… In the future, energy transmission will be as liberated from wires as mobile communications,” described Wu Chang, director of the Jiufengshan Laboratory Research Center. This is not a distant dream but a reality being advanced by the laboratory.

After in-depth research on gallium nitride, a representative material of third-generation compound semiconductors, the lab successfully built a dynamic long-distance microwave wireless power transmission system, demonstrating dynamic wireless power supply to drones within a 20-meter range. However, for cutting-edge technology to leap from “samples” in the lab to “products” in the market, a crucial step called “pilot testing” is essential. Approximately 70% of lab results stop at this stage, which is critical for validating the technology on a larger scale and for evaluating performance, stability, and cost constraints in real-world applications. In December 2025, the Jiufengshan Laboratory’s compound semiconductor pilot testing platform was selected as one of the first national-level manufacturing pilot testing platforms.

“We are equipped with advanced compound semiconductor processing and testing platforms covering optoelectronics, next-generation communications, and power electronics,” Wu Chang said. “This is the best testing ground to verify whether domestic chips, software, equipment, and materials can meet standards.” Over the past three years, this testing ground has provided services to over 500 semiconductor-related enterprises, covering 24 provinces and cities, promoting breakthroughs in critical technologies like silicon carbide and gallium nitride, and helping numerous technological sparks evolve into industrial “seeds.”

The practices at Jiufengshan Laboratory are emblematic of Hubei’s systematic construction of a deep integration between technological innovation and industrial innovation. Currently, under the nurturing of a “Big Dipper” style innovation support system and a “tropical rainforest” style innovation ecosystem, Hubei has established a scientific power matrix composed of one national laboratory, eight major scientific facilities, 45 national key laboratories, ten Hubei laboratories, and 547 new research and development institutions. This matrix continues to facilitate the smooth flow of talent, funds, technology, and markets, driving a virtuous cycle of technological innovation and industrial upgrading.

The rapid rise of the humanoid robot industry is a result of this “virtuous cycle.” At the Hubei Humanoid Robot Innovation Center, hundreds of humanoid robots are undergoing training in lifelike scenarios such as supermarkets, restaurants, residences, and factories under the guidance of trainers. “Data acquisition challenges, high costs, and inconsistent quality are common issues restricting the development of the humanoid robot industry,” noted Liu Chuanhou, COO of the Hubei Humanoid Robot Innovation Center. The core bottleneck in the industry’s development lies in “data scarcity.” To address this, the center has established the country’s first all-scenario humanoid robot data collection factory, capable of producing over 20,000 valid data points daily and millions of real-machine training data annually—essentially building a “data reservoir” to nurture innovation from the source and accelerate the industrialization process of humanoid robots.

Simultaneously, the Hubei Humanoid Robot Innovation Center aims for a goal of “one year to start, three years to see results, and five years to gain momentum”, providing support in research and development space, financial backing, and talent connections for enterprises. It has already attracted a cluster of complete machine and core component companies, achieving an 80% coverage of the entire industry chain. “The government’s support policies provide assurance, and the innovation center’s ‘one-stop’ service lowers the research and development threshold. Hubei’s talent advantage gives us confidence in betting on the future,” expressed Xiong Shaohua, head of a smart robot manufacturing company in Wuhan, with optimism about future developments.

Today, humanoid robots developed here are widely applied in various fields such as healthcare, power inspection, commercial services, special operations, and industrial manufacturing, accelerating the conversion of technological achievements into industrial effectiveness.

Green Development: Establishing a New Model of Ecological Civilization

In early winter, under the warm sun, a few Yangtze River dolphins leap out of the water and dive back in near the Gezhouba Dam in Yichang, playfully chasing each other. “In the past, photographing dolphins was a rare occurrence. Now, it’s different; they have made this place their home, and you can observe and record them every day,” shared photographer Yang He, who has followed the dolphins for six years. The Yangtze dolphin is an “indicator species” of the ecological status of the Yangtze River. A special survey in 2025 revealed that the population of Yangtze dolphins has recovered to 1,426, an increase of 177 from the 2022 survey, indicating a restorative growth in their numbers.

The unique geographical advantages of Yichang have historically linked the city with the chemical industry, leading to challenges such as “chemical encroachment on the river.” The transformation journey of Xingfa Group stands out. Once, the group’s industrial park was adjacent to the Yangtze River, and if not dismantled, it would continue to impact the ecological environment. However, if dismantled, the group risked disrupting its supply chain for international markets. Ultimately, the group made a resolute decision—“to dismantle!” Overnight, all direct wastewater discharge outlets were sealed, and the chemical installations along the river were closed and dismantled. However, the process of “closing, transforming, and relocating” was not just about shutting down; after the initial pain, the group shifted its focus to high-end and green development. “We are both practitioners of the Yangtze River’s protection and real beneficiaries,” explained Li Guozhang, the group’s party secretary and chairman. During the 14th Five-Year Plan, the group achieved a green transformation from high growth to high-quality development.

Protecting the clear waters of the river wins the vitality for development. In recent years, Yichang has been promoting the “closure, transformation, and relocation” of chemical enterprises along the river, dismantling riverfront docks, freeing up port shoreline, and creating a unique “50-mile riverfront with 50 scenic spots,” transforming production shorelines into ecological shorelines. The once-busy docks have turned into leisure spots for citizens. The full implementation of a “ten-year fishing ban” and the prohibition of net cage farming in rivers and lakes have ensured that “the dolphins riding the waves” become a common sight.

Hubei is a core battleground for implementing the Yangtze River’s major protection policies and serves as a key water source for the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, bearing a special mission of “one river of clear water flowing east, and one reservoir of clear water sent north.” In the Danjiangkou Reservoir area, a drone is slowly rising under the control of a staff member, conducting flight missions along the reservoir’s coastline. On the monitor, the shimmering water of the Danjiangkou Reservoir is fully visible. “In the past, a patrol covering several kilometers would take half a day and often have blind spots. Now, using drones for automatic inspections, capturing images, and transmitting them in real-time has significantly improved monitoring efficiency,” said Shan Jinhua, a staff member at the Danjiangkou Water Quality Assurance Center.

Behind this “clear” protection lies a precision-driven system engineering support. At the Danjiangkou City Water Quality Safety Assurance Command Center, a large electronic screen monitors ecological data in real-time. Shan Jinhua explained that the center has established an integrated smart supervision system incorporating air, land, and water, forming a closed-loop management mechanism of “discovery—reporting—dispatch—receiving—completion”, ensuring that the reservoir’s water quality is safer, more stable, and sustainable. Currently, Danjiangkou City has achieved a systematic enhancement in its water protection capabilities, with water quality consistently reaching Class II standards and over 80% of days meeting Class I standards.

“During the 14th Five-Year Plan, Hubei accelerated the implementation of the Beautiful Hubei strategy, continuously advanced the major protection of the Yangtze River, and deeply fought against pollution, resulting in continual improvements in ecological environment quality, achieving blue skies, green lands, and clear waters,” stated Yan Tianwen, Secretary of the Party Group and Director of the Hubei Provincial Department of Ecology and Environment. Looking towards the 15th Five-Year Plan, Hubei will continue to deepen the actions for upgrading the major protection of the Yangtze River, enhance cross-regional joint prevention and control of key river basins like the Yangtze, Han, and Qing rivers, strengthen water quality safety assurance in key areas like the Danjiangkou Reservoir and the Three Gorges Reservoir, and improve horizontal ecological compensation mechanisms in river basins, accelerating the construction of a modern water network in Hubei.

Connectivity: Reshaping the Grand Pattern of Transportation

On the morning of November 7, 2025, at Ezhou Huahu International Airport, a cargo plane from Ethiopian Airlines landed smoothly. As the cargo door opened, a race against time began. Unloading, customs clearance, sorting, loading… The process flowed seamlessly, and in just two hours, fresh cherries were loaded onto cold chain trucks, ready to be dispatched nationwide. Just five years ago, this airport existed only in planning. As Asia’s first, and the world’s fourth, specialized cargo hub airport completed and put into operation during the 14th Five-Year Plan, Huahu Airport has opened 114 domestic and international cargo routes in just three years, with a cargo throughput exceeding 1.4781 million tons in 2025, marking a leap in hub capacity.

“We operate with the philosophy of ‘opening a route, cultivating an industry, and building an ecology’,” said He Fei, deputy general manager of the hub development department of Hubei International Logistics Airport Company. The airport’s value extends beyond logistics; it serves as a vital pivot for stimulating the economy around the airport and linking global markets.

In the adjacent cross-border e-commerce industrial park’s live streaming center, a host from Pakistan is promoting drones made in Shantou to overseas consumers. This e-commerce team, formed by Wuhan entrepreneurs Qian Ling and Zhang Lei, initially came to Ezhou with a trial mindset. “Unexpectedly, with the help of the cross-border e-commerce task force in the Ezhou airport economic zone, we clarified the entire process from ‘live streaming—packaging—customs clearance—shipping’ in three days,” Qian Ling shared. Two months later, this small team, which started with just two people, has grown to 15, with sales exceeding $200,000.

This “Ezhou speed” is evident throughout the industrial park: within a month, a wetland park and outdoor café were established, a makerspace was built in two months, and over 40 offices in the cross-border seller incubation center were filled within a week. Wang Tan, deputy secretary of the Ezhou Cross-Border E-Commerce Association, noted that since the park opened nine months ago, 535 registered enterprises have achieved a trade import-export volume of $400 million, showcasing the initial success of the new model of integrated development of “cross-border e-commerce + industrial belt + airport economy.”

While Hubei accelerates its connection with the world, its internal transportation network continues to expand. At 10:40 AM on December 8, 2025, the G6803 Fuxing high-speed train departed from Jingmen West Station, officially opening the “Jingjing High-Speed Railway.” With this, all 17 cities in Hubei are now connected by high-speed rail, fulfilling the long-held dream of high-speed rail for the people of Jingmen.

“Being able to take the high-speed train home feels great!” exclaimed Mr. Lu, a Jingmen resident working in Wuhan, as he boarded the train, unable to hide his excitement. “In the past, I either took a bus or a regular train, calculating time and weather days in advance. Now, with high-speed rail, not only is the travel time shorter, but it’s also safer and more comfortable.” The total length of highways has surpassed 8,000 kilometers; the total length of high-speed rail has exceeded 2,500 kilometers, with the “super rice-shaped” network in Wuhan and multiple connections in Xiangyang and Yichang rapidly taking shape. The Yangtze River can accommodate 10,000-ton vessels year-round from Wuhan to Anqing, while the Han River has opened up a navigable channel for 1,000-ton vessels below Xiangyang. The China-Europe Railway Express has established a new channel for land-sea intermodal transport in Central China, and the Huahu International Airport has become an inland “air outlet.” A modern comprehensive transportation network covering land, water, and air, linking domestic and international routes, is being rapidly woven throughout Hubei.

“During the 14th Five-Year Plan, Hubei’s hub position has become more prominent, and the beautiful vision of ‘people enjoying their journeys and goods flowing smoothly’ is accelerating to realization across the land of Jingchu,” stated Zhong Zhiqing, Secretary of the Party Group and Director of the Hubei Provincial Department of Transportation. In the 15th Five-Year Plan period, Hubei will focus on smoothing major thoroughfares, building major hubs, and strengthening major intermodal transport. It will advance the interconnectivity of rail, water, road, and air transport, and accelerate the construction of comprehensive three-dimensional transport corridors, playing a vital role in the national logistics hub and creating a new era of “Nine Provinces Converging.”

After five years of perseverance, Hubei has penned a high-quality development report card featuring strong economy, thriving technology, beautiful ecology, and prosperous citizens during the 14th Five-Year Plan. The Yangtze River is greener, innovation momentum is robust, and the well-being of the people is warm, while the construction of strategic pivots accelerates. The new journey of the 15th Five-Year Plan has begun, and the children of Jingchu will continue to bravely shoulder strategic missions, embodying the spirit of “pioneers” and “innovators” to strive for excellence in the high-quality development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, rapidly establishing an important strategic pivot for the rise of the central region, and vigorously composing the chapter of Hubei’s modernization in the Chinese context.