The Beijing municipal government has announced plans to turn its two remaining counties into districts to bolster urbanization.
Miyun County, in the northeastern suburbs of Beijing, and Yanqing County, in the northwest, will be reclassified as districts, said a statement by the Beijing municipal government on Wednesday.
China has certain prerequisites, including a high percentage of non-agricultural industries and population, before a county is elevated to district level and administered by a city.
Miyun and Yanqing have met the requirements, said Wang Yukai, professor with the Chinese Academy of Governance.
County-level government is more independent than that of a district, Wang said, but district governments receive more investment from the city in infrastructure, education and medical services.
Beijing started to turn its counties into districts in the 1990s as part of an urbanization drive. The municipality now has 16 districts.
