Hangzhou will host the 19th Asian Games in 2022. [Photo provided to ehangzhou.gov.cn]

Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province, has been pursuing digital development and working to become a happier and more livable city, according to a press conference held by the Zhejiang provincial government on Dec 14.

It is working toward digital-related technological progress by encouraging innovation, improving social governance, simplifying civil affairs, and growing the added value of core industries in the digital economy at an annual average rate of 15 percent.

Hangzhou has seen an increase in happiness levels due to higher incomes, longer lifespans, and improved public services such as education and healthcare.

It has become a hub for talent from all walks of life, including a chef-turned programmer and young deliveryman being awarded high-end talent and housing subsidies. It has been ranked by foreigners as the most attractive Chinese city for nine years in a row, and in 2020, 280,000 college graduates under the age of 35 moved there.

Hangzhou has always prioritized environmental protection and green development, with its water quality improving, forest coverage expanding, and air getting fresher. It also preserves its large number of cultural deposits, which include West Lake, the Grand Canal, and the Archaeological Ruins of Liangzhu City. It aspires to develop a civilized culture.

WeChat Pay advertisements hang from the ceiling at a supermarket in Hangzhou. [Photo by Long Wei/China Daily]