China unveils its first green development index ranking

Beijing, Dec 26: China on Tuesday unveiled its first regional green development index ranking, which takes into account economic performance as well as various environmental indicators.

The index covers 55 indicators, including energy consumption efficiency, carbon emissions, air quality, per-capita disposable income, as well as research and development spending, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), reports Xinhua news agency.
"Efforts will be taken to improve the green development index system and better the annual evaluation system for local government performance on ecological development," Ning Jizhe, head of the NBS, said. 
The green development index ranking came one year after the central authority decided to use the index to measure local government performance on green growth and ecological development as the country focuses more on high-quality development. Results of the review will be a key reference in the promotion of officials, and punishment for any wrongdoing. UNI