A container vessel is berthed at the Jintang port area of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in Zhejiang province in July. [Photo by Yao Feng/For China Daily]

The Ningbo municipal government recently unveiled a five-year development plan for its marine economy development.

According to the plan, the city will strive to increase its gross ocean product (GOP) to above 320 billion yuan ($49.23 billion) by 2025 and account for 25 percent of the total in Zhejiang province.

By 2035, the city is expected to have a GOP that is double that of 2025, and become a global hub for the marine economy.

Specifically, efforts will be made to transform Ningbo Zhoushan Port into a world-class port and increase its Xinhua-Baltic ISCD Index ranking so that it is among the top eight global shipping hubs by 2025.

In addition, Ningbo has set the goal of making more than 100 breakthroughs in marine technologies and setting up sisterhood relations with 10 coastal cities.

It will also sustain its efforts in enhancing its marine ecological environment. By 2025, the city should have improved the environment along 100 kilometers of its coastlines and built a national-level bay area.

Official data shows Ningbo's GOP was valued at 167.4 billion yuan in 2020, making up 18 percent of the provincial total.