Action Plan for Promoting High-Quality Development of the International Cruise Economy (2023-2025)

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Shanghai Action Plan for Promoting High-Quality Development of the International Cruise Economy (2023-2025)

December 1, 2023

(June 7, 2023)

SMPG GO G [2023] No. 10

As the cruise economy has a long industrial chain and strong driving force, it is of great significance to promoting the expansion of domestic demand, releasing consumption potential, cultivating development momentum and promoting the benign interaction between the domestic and international dual circulations. This Action Plan is formulated with a view to promoting the high-quality development of Shanghai's international cruise economy, leading the Asia-Pacific cruise market to accelerate its recovery and revitalization, and actively participate in the global cruise economy competition and cooperation.

I. Work Objectives

By adhering to the integration of advantages, strengthening coordinated promotion, serving the national strategies, and giving full play to the advantages of Shanghai in gathering cruise economic factors, this Municipality shall accelerate the layout of high-end links in the international cruise industry chain, and further enhance Shanghai's ability to serve the national strategies in the course of serving the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta, the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, and the Belt and Road Initiative. By adhering to reform and innovation, strengthening demonstration and guidance, and following the development law and trend of the international cruise industry, Shanghai shall promote the innovation of its international cruise industry policy system, provide replicable and popularized experience for the development of the national cruise industry, and cultivate new drivers of growth for the cruise economy development.

The "Shanghai model" of cruise economy development consisting of "hub port, headquarters port and manufacturing port" shall be formed by 2025, with Shanghai's position as a cruise comprehensive hub port in the Asia-Pacific region being further consolidated, the driving effect of the cruise headquarters economy becoming more obvious, and the cruise manufacturing and supporting industrial system being initially formed.

-Building a cruise "hub port". The number of tourists received annually shall reach about three million, the proportion of overseas tourists shall reach about 10 percent, and the proportion of international cruise tourists' airport transfer shall reach about 5 percent.

-Building a cruise "headquarters port". A number of cruise headquarters enterprises and international institutions shall be introduced from abroad, and the number and scale shall be doubled compared with 2022.

-Building a cruise "manufacturing port". New breakthroughs shall be made in the key core technologies of cruise development, the general contracting capacity of large cruise projects shall be initially formed, and the domestic production rate of cruise manufacturing shall reach about 50 percent.

-Improving the independent operation ability of cruises. One or two domestic cruise brands competitive in the Asia-Pacific region shall be built.

-Building an Asia-Pacific cruise supply base. The domestic ship supply ratio on international cruise routes shall be increased to about 30 percent.

-Significantly increasing the scale of the cruise economy. The overall economic contribution and output shall reach about 40 billion yuan.

By 2035, Shanghai shall grow into a world-class cruise hub port, with the tourist reception volume steadily ranking among the top three in the world, a cruise tourism destination with international influence, and a cruise economic center with global resource allocation capabilities in the Asia-Pacific region.

II. Working Measures

1. Building up the Size of the Cruise Headquarters Economy

(1) Cultivating the headquarters of domestic cruise enterprises. We shall support the creation of domestic cruise fleets, cultivate and develop the headquarters of domestic cruise enterprises, and improve the quality of domestic cruise brands. Benchmarking the international common rules, we shall explore and pilot in the fields of design and construction, independent operation, material supply, route arrangement, crew nationality and service life of cruises, to enhance the comprehensive strength of domestic cruise enterprises. We shall boost the specialized reorganization of cruise manufacturing enterprises, and build Chinese cruise enterprises with global influence and competitiveness. (Responsible departments and units: the Municipal Commission of Commerce, the Municipal Development & Reform Commission, the Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Transportation Commission, the Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government, Pudong New Area People's Government and CSSC)

(2) Gathering the headquarters of foreign-funded cruise enterprises. We shall give full play to the advantages of Shanghai's location, resources and business environment to attract regional headquarters, headquarters-type service institutions and business headquarters of global cruise multinational companies to settle down here, and build Shanghai into a base for the headquarters of cruise multinational companies that is characterized by a perfect service system, obvious policy advantages and concentrated market resources, thus achieving the effect of international cruise headquarters agglomeration. (Responsible departments and units: the Municipal Commission of Commerce, the Municipal Development & Reform Commission, the Municipal Finance Bureau, the Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government and Pudong New Area People's Government)

2. Building up the Strength of the Cruise Manufacturing System

(3) Establishing a cruise independent research & development and design system. Based on the construction of the cruise yacht equipment industry system, we shall focus on production assembly, repair and supporting, design, and research & development, so as to establish a cruise independent research & development and design system, and create cruise products with independent intellectual property rights. We shall support the establishment of municipal large-scale cruise manufacturing innovation centers, and actively promote key cruise manufacturing enterprises to set up national enterprise technology centers and national large-scale cruise research and development platforms. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Pudong New Area People's Government, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government and CSSC)

(4) Cultivating the general contracting capacity of cruise construction projects. Based on independent research and development, we shall focus on supply chain construction, to promote the construction of a world-class cruise design and manufacturing assembly base. We shall combine various forces to tackle key problems of core equipment such as cruise digital design, audio-visual entertainment, HVAC, and interior engineering. We shall accelerate the construction of supporting supply chains, strengthen industrial linkage and cross-domain integration, promote the coordinated development of upstream and downstream enterprises in the industrial chain, build a system for cruise construction and operation standards, establish technical standards and norms, and provide cruise testing and certification services. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Shanghai Customs District, Pudong New Area People's Government, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government and CSSC)

(5) Expanding the cruise maintenance and renovation business. Relying on the market advantage of Shanghai as the largest cruise port in Asia and its geographical advantage of connecting with the Yangtze River and the sea, we shall integrate the ship repairing and building resources in the Yangtze River Delta, introduce international and functional projects, expand the cruise maintenance and renovation business, and carry out high-tech, high value-added and environmentally friendly cruise maintenance and renovation business. We shall innovate the port supervision mode, support cruise manufacturing enterprises outside the special customs supervision area with the required conditions to undertake international cruise manufacturing, bonded maintenance and other business. We shall optimize and enrich the comprehensive functions of the cruise economy and industry, and improve the economic benefits of cruise maintenance and renovation. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Shanghai Customs District, Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection, Pudong New Area People's Government, Baoshan District People's Government and CSSC)

3. Taking Solid Steps to Expand Port Hub Functions

(6) Developing a spatial layout of industries that complement each other's advantages. We shall strengthen the top-level design of international cruise economy development, and rely on the layout of international cruise ports with "two master ports and one standby" (Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal, Shanghai Port International Cruise Terminal, and Waigaoqiao Haitong Standby Terminal), make overall plans for the functions of various districts, publish the general plan of Shanghai international cruise economy, promote the establishment of a collaborative innovation and development mechanism, and realize the integration, differentiation and synergy of Shanghai international cruise economy. Wusongkou in Baoshan District shall strive to build a cruise operation headquarters base with global resource allocation capability and a Shanghai International Cruise Tourism Resort with the theme of "cruises, sightseeing boats and yachts". North Bund in Hongkou District shall focus on developing the shipping headquarters economy featured by "quality cruise ships, inland cruise ships and leisure yachts". Waigaoqiao in Pudong New Area shall focus on the construction of a cruise manufacturing base and expand cruise trade, business and R&D services. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Shanghai Municipal Development and Reform Commission, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Transport, t Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, Pudong New Area People's Government, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government and SIPG)

(7) Enriching the supply of cruise products. We shall support the development of cruise routes with multiple levels and distinctive features, and build a diversified international cruise tourism product system, to develop an important hub for domestic and international cruise tourism. We encourage the diversification of cruise ship types, vigorously attract cruise ships of different grades, categories and themes to operate differentiated international routes with Shanghai as the home port, and increase the number of ports of call. We encourage cruise companies to develop medium and long-distance cruise routes to Southeast Asia, Europe, America or round the world, and support the development of coastal route products with Shanghai as the home port. (Responsible departments and units: the Municipal Transportation Commission, the Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, the Municipal Commission of Commerce, Hongkou District People's Government and Baoshan District People's Government)

(8) Enhancing the attraction of cruise destinations. We shall promote the integration of tourism in the Yangtze River Delta and accelerate the coordinated development of cruise tourism and regional tourism; promote the joint development of cruise tourism and urban quality tourism; create a first-class cruise service carrier and form a cruise supporting service consumption gathering area; promote the incorporation of the cruise transportation supporting hub construction into the Municipal comprehensive transportation planning, and realize the convenient transfer between the cruise ports and airports and railways. (Responsible departments and units: the Municipal Transportation Commission, the Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, the Municipal Commission of Commerce, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government and SIPG)

(9) Enhancing the influence of cruise ports-of-call. We shall increase the supply of high-quality cruise products with cultural connotations, develop shipping routes involving international cruise ports-of-call, and attract more international cruise brands to Shanghai. We shall deepen the cooperation between international and domestic cruise ports, increase the operation of routes using each other's home ports and multiple home ports, extend to the tourist hinterland of more ports of call, increase the number of cruise ships at ports of call, and the number of inbound tourists and the transfer ratio, promote the inbound tourism consumption of cruise ships, and enhance the influence of Shanghai cruise hub port. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Transport, Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government and SIPG)

(10) Optimizing the functions of the cruise ports. We shall continuously promote the facilitation of customs clearance at the cruise ports, make good and full use of the "144-hour" transit visa-free policy, the "15-day cruise" entry visa-free policy, and the convenience measures for fingerprint collection of cruise inbound tourists, upgrade and transform the inspection facilities at the cruise ports, and enhance the trade function of the cruise ports. (Responsible departments and units: the Municipal Commission of Commerce, the Municipal Public Security Bureau, Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection, Shanghai Customs District, Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government and Pudong New Area People's Government)

(11) Deepening the construction of a "single window" for customs clearance at the cruise ports. We shall continuously promote the construction of the "single window" area for cruises, improve the functions of cruise data collection, data resource sharing, infrastructure support, business system integration and data security, and further consolidate the digital base for high-quality development of the cruise economy. We shall promote the functional integration, data integration and business integration of the "single window" with the systems of entry-exit administration, customs, immigration inspection, maritime affairs, cruise terminals and cruise companies. We shall develop a cruise port customs clearance mode with full coverage of the customs clearance process and full declaration of passenger information, and create a safe, convenient and efficient cruise port customs clearance environment. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Transport, the Municipal Public Security Bureau, Shanghai Customs District, Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration, Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection, Pudong New Area People's Government, Baoshan District People's Government and Hongkou District People's Government)

4. Building up Refined Cruise Supporting Services

(12) Building an Asia-Pacific cruise service trade platform. We shall support Shanghai cruise enterprises to expand their service scope and build a cruise service trade platform. We shall introduce from abroad ship administration, education and training, labor export, ship supply, marketing, information consultation, association organizations, testing and certification institutions, trading services, cruise exhibitions, etc., thus enhancing the comprehensive supporting service capacity of cruise ships. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Transport, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government, Pudong New Area People's Government and CSSC)

(13) Building an Asia-Pacific cruise ship material supply center. We shall focus on the cruise ship material supply chain and build a comprehensive cruise ship material supply and replenishment base. We shall develop an important platform for the integrated development of domestic and foreign trade by formulating product standards and service systems for cruise material supply, improving the comprehensive service level of cruise material supply, and building a standardized and digital cruise material supply center. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Shanghai Municipal Development and Reform Commission, Shanghai Customs District, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, the Municipal Tax Service under the State Taxation Administration, Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government, Pudong New Area People's Government, CSSC and SIPG)

(14) Cultivating an Asia-Pacific cruise consumption center. We shall actively promote the construction of Shanghai International Cruise Tourism Resort, Shanghai North Bund Tourism Resort and other new landmarks of cultural tourism, build a cultural, business and tourism complex integrating tourist reception, cruise service, leisure vacation and consumption shopping, expand the connotation of cruise consumption, build cruise consumption brands, and realize the upgrading and expansion of cruise consumption. According to the characteristics of cruise travel, we shall optimize the layout of duty-free shops at ports of entry and exit, enrich product categories and enhance passengers' service experience. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Finance, the Municipal Tax Service under the State Taxation Administration, Shanghai Customs District, Baoshan District People's Government and Hongkou District People's Government)

(15) Establishing an Asia-Pacific cruise crew service center. We shall build an online service platform and an offline training service center for Asia-Pacific cruise crew which focus on the needs of cruise crew recruitment, dispatch, training and service. We shall promote the improvement of the comprehensive professional quality of cruise crew and form a comprehensive service system for cruise crew that matches the comprehensive cruise hub port in the Asia-Pacific region. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration, the Municipal Education Commission, the Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection, Baoshan District People's Government and CSSC)

5. Improving the Cruise Industry Ecology

(16) Strengthening the building of a financial service system. We shall establish a complete cruise financial service system, focus on the upstream and downstream industrial chains of cruise ships, broaden the investment and financing channels for cruise companies, and increase the supply of financing, insurance and services for the cruise industry, so as to promote the integrated development of the capital chain, industrial chain and innovation chain. We shall focus on supporting the development of "specialized, refined, special and new" cruise enterprises, and support their listing and financing. We shall promote the development of cruise financial leasing business, and support national policy financial institutions to refer to the financial service model of international cruise ships so as to provide efficient and convenient financial services for cruise enterprises.  (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Financial Regulatory Bureau, Shanghai Municipal Development and Reform Commission, Shanghai Office of China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, Baoshan District People's Government, Hongkou District People's Government and Pudong New Area People's Government)

(17) Building a complete cruise talent system. We shall issue encouraging policies to attract global cruise talents and cultivate local cruise talents. We shall establish a talent pool for the cruise industry to reserve talents for the entire cruise industry chain including cruise design and manufacturing, cruise operation, and high-end services. We shall establish a practical training base for cruise talents, and support universities to set up cruise courses to realize industry-university-research cooperation and promote deep integration of production and education. We shall strengthen the vocational training of cruise tourism practitioners, encourage qualified enterprises to independently carry out employee training, and support vocational colleges and training institutions to provide training services for enterprises, and eligible enterprises may enjoy vocational training subsidies. We shall establish an international cruise expert resource pool to promote the exchange of high-level talents in the international cruise industry. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, tShanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Education, the Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, Hongkou District People's Government, Baoshan District People's Government and Pudong New Area People's Government)

(18) Establishing a statistical monitoring system for cruise data. Relying on professional associations and other independent third-party professional institutions, we shall establish the monitoring system of Shanghai international cruise economy. We shall support the statistical department to form a cruise statistical investigation and analysis system. We shall introduce international authoritative cruise economic research and consulting institutions, carry out international cooperation, and gradually establish a cruise economic statistical monitoring and evaluation system. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, the Municipal Bureau of Statistics, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Transport, Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, Shanghai Customs District, Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration and Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection)

(19) Promoting and perfecting the comprehensive supporting policy system. Relying on the reform and innovation platforms such as Pudong Pioneer Area, Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone, Comprehensive Bonded Zone and China Cruise Tourism Development Demonstration Zone, we shall jointly develop the advantages of the innovation system; by focusing on improving port functions, cultivating market players, improving financial services, and developing international cooperation, we shall establish a more internationally competitive support system for the cruise industry policy system in terms of adding cruise supervision methods, increasing route supply, optimizing visa convenience, and conducting cross-border data flow evaluation. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Development and Reform Commission, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Transport, Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Shanghai Customs District, Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration, Shanghai General Station of Immigration Inspection, the Municipal Tax Service under the State Taxation Administration, Pudong New Area People's Government, Baoshan District People's Government and Hongkou District People's Government)

(20) Creating a platform for cooperation and exchange with international influence. Relying on the North Bund Forum, we shall hold the Shanghai Summit of International Cruises, release information on cruise routes, products and strategies, promote and introduce the development opportunities and market space of Chinese cruises, and expand the communication and influence of Shanghai's brands in the international cruise market. We shall continue to hold the Asia-Pacific Cruise Conference and the Wusongkou Forum, actively introduce international cruise brand events and cruise international economic organizations, and strengthen cooperation and exchanges with the international cruise industry. (Responsible departments and units: Shanghai Municipal Commission of Transport, Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism, Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Hongkou District People's Government, Baoshan District People's Government and Pudong New Area People's Government)