Xiong'an Rongdong region, one of the first areas to be built up in Xiong'an New Area. [Photo/IC]

North China's Hebei province has seen its annual tourism revenue exceed 1 trillion yuan($139 billion) last year, significantly surpassing pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.

This data was revealed in the latest government work report of the province at the opening of the annual session of the Hebei Provincial People's Congress on Sunday morning in the provincial capital, Shijiazhuang. The province's Governor Wang Zhengpu delivered the work report of the People's Government of Hebei.

In recent years, Hebei has vigorously implemented multiple tourism-promoting measures, including those with the slogan of "So Close, So Beautiful, Spend Your Weekends in Hebei", which has had a widespread influence.

The measures focused on attracting tourists from neighboring provinces and cities to visit Hebei, including Beijing, Tianjin and provinces of Shanxi and Henan.

In addition, according to the government work report, Hebei has effectively carried out disaster relief and post-flood reconstruction works in 2023.

The province suffered severe rainfall and flooding in late July and early August.

Its measures for recovery has promoted comprehensive resumption of work and production, ensured that students affected by the disaster returned to school on time, and effectively guaranteed the safety and warmth of affected people during the winter.

In terms of economic development, the province's economic operation has shown a positive trend, with its gross domestic product growing by 5.5 percent last year.

What's more, the investment in projects of over 1 billion yuan increased by 35 percent, while the investment in high-tech industries grew by 28.5 percent last year.

Among others, the Xiong'an New Area has become an important engine driving the investment.

Since central authorities announced to establish Xiong'an in 2017, the new economic zone has gained great development in the past seven years and significant progress has been made in the construction of the new area.

Meanwhile, the overall coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region is taking on a new outlook.

Working together with Beijing and Tianjin, Hebei has made a historic breakthrough in creating key industrial chains such as new energy and intelligent connected vehicles, as well as robot industry, and in attracting central enterprises' secondary and tertiary subsidiaries.