Life of Guangzhou - Shenzhen Boasts 3rd-largest Number of Architects

Shenzhen has about 13,000 architects and urban designers, the third largest number in the country after Beijing and Shanghai, a government official told a press conference yesterday.

Architects and urban designers earn a total revenue of 4.3 billion yuan (US$540 million) for the city annually, at least 70 percent of which comes from inland China, said Wang Youpeng, deputy director general of the Shenzhen Municipal Urban Planning Bureau.

Wang was addressing a press conference on the city's first forum for architects and urban designers, entitled Profession Development Forum of Planning & Architecture, which will be held Thursday and Friday at Four Points By Sheraton Shenzhen in Futian District.

More than 300 professionals from within and outside the city are expected to attend the forum, which will discuss a wide variety of issues concerning urban design and architecture in China.

"Shenzhen has some of the best architects and urban designers in the country," said Wang. The number of first-class registered architects in the city has reached 624, accounting for 47 percent of the provincial total.

However, Shenzhen designers are still yet to reach the level of their Western counterparts, said Wang. The successful bidders for the city's major projects such as Shenzhen Concert Hall, Shenzhen Library, and Shenzhen Book City, are foreign companies.

"We hope the forum will help local designers grow up to compete with their foreign counterparts," said Wang.