Rise of Yunling: A legend of crossing from the border secret realm to the open highlands

In the depths of the clouds and fog of the southwest plateau, Yunnan is slicing a shocking transformation. This border province, once blocked by mountains and ridges, is now taking the construction of the "Belt and Road" as a fulcrum, leveraging the new pattern of opening up to South Asia and Southeast Asia. When the morning mist dissipates in the Lancang River Canyon, the sound of the whistle of the China-Laos Railway penetrates the thousand-year-old tea-horse road, the photovoltaic panels shine with silver light on the red clay plateau, the fragrance of Pu'er tea and the data flow of cross-border e-commerce are intertwined at the Kunming International Data Exchange - this ancient land is creating a development miracle that belongs to the new era.

1. Reconstruct the geographical genes of three-dimensional transportation network

After three years of opening to traffic on the China-Laos Railway, this steel dragon with a total length of 1,035 kilometers has completely rewritten the location logic of Yunnan. As of the end of 2024, it has sent a total of 43 million passengers and 48.3 million tons of cargo, shortening the time and space distance from Kunming to Vientiane from 3 days to 10 hours. What is even more amazing is that this railway has spawned the "LanMekong Express" international train, closely connecting China's Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta with the ASEAN market, and cross-border cargo transportation covers 19 countries and regions, and the transportation cost is reduced by 30%-50%. Nowadays, the smart gates at Mohan Port are inspected and released 30 people per minute. Unmanned forklifts in the China-Laos Cross-border Logistics Park are accurately placing photovoltaic modules, and an open picture of "people enjoy their journey and things flow freely" is unfolding.

In addition to the railway, Yunnan's three-dimensional transportation network is also eye-catching. The "seven provinces and five outbound" expressway network has basically taken shape, and Kunming Changshui International Airport is open to 43 cities in South Asia and Southeast Asia, ranking first in the country. Lancang River-Mekong International Shipping achieved a zero breakthrough in container transportation, and the import and export value of Guanlei Port in the first seven months of 2024 surged by 114.2% year-on-year. When the Kunming International Communications Business Entrance and Exit Bureau started construction, the maximum network delay from western provinces to South Asia and Southeast Asia dropped by more than 50%, and the roadbed of the Digital Silk Road is being consolidated.

2. Green energy revolution reshapes industrial texture

In the photovoltaic industrial park in Zhanyi, Qujing, the monocrystalline silicon rods flashed coldly in the dust-free workshop. The photovoltaic modules produced here have a full life cycle carbon footprint of 40% lower than the national average, becoming a "green pass" to explore the international market. As of May 2025, Yunnan's new energy installed capacity exceeded 60 million kilowatts, and photovoltaic and wind power installed capacity jumped to second and third in the country respectively. The prototype of "zero carbon provinces" with green energy accounting for more than 90% of the proportion of green energy has begun to emerge.

This energy revolution is reshaping the industrial landscape. In the Green Aluminum Valley in Mengzi, Honghe, the aluminum material refined by Yunao Co., Ltd. has become the core material of Tesla's battery shell; in Anning, Kunming, Yunnan Yuneng's lithium iron phosphate positive electrode material production line can be completed and put into production every 110 days, ranking first in the country in production capacity. In 2024, the "new three" things in green aluminum, silicon photovoltaics and new energy batteries contributed 20.8% to the growth of the above-scale industrial scale, completely changing the traditional industrial label of Yunnan's "tobacco, alcohol, tea and sugar".

3. Integration of culture and tourism activates the value of the whole region

On the ecological corridor on the west coast of Erhai Lake in Dali, the figures of cyclists fly with the red-billed gulls; in the ancient tea forest of Jingmai Mountain in Pu'er, tea farmers are using blockchain technology to confirm the rights of the thousand-year-old ancient tea trees. In 2024, Yunnan received 1.132 billion tourists and achieved tourism revenue of 1.49 trillion yuan. "There is a kind of life called Yunnan" became a phenomenon-level IP. What is even more surprising is that the tourism economy is developing in depth: in the Dai pottery workshop in Xishuangbanna, the inheritor of intangible cultural heritage sold his works to Bangkok through cross-border e-commerce; the "Dabia Dance" performance in Nujiang Canyon attracted millions of overseas audiences through 5G live broadcast.

This transformation originates from the deep integration of culture and tourism. When Jingmai Mountain Ancient Tea Forest became the world's first tea-themed world heritage site, driving the tourism income of surrounding villages to grow by 184%; when Lincang Wengding Village's Wa cultural experience project allowed the average annual income of villagers to increase by more than 20,000 yuan, Yunnan found a balance point between cultural protection and economic development. Today, 444 intangible cultural heritage workshops in the province have directly led to 38,000 jobs, with an average monthly income of nearly 3,000 yuan, and the ancient national culture is reborn.

4. The digital economy opens up a new track for development

In Kunming Shanghai-Diangang Science and Technology City, the "Digital Cloud Cattle" project is rewriting the rules of the animal husbandry industry. By implanting the rumen sensor, the health data of each cow is uploaded to the blockchain in real time, which not only reduces the cost of feed by 15%, but also obtains bank credit through data assets. This innovation was sublimated by the Kunming International Data Exchange: In the first half of 2024, 21 data transactions were completed here, with an amount of 59 million yuan, and special products such as flower trading data and carbon footprint data have become the new favorites in the market.

Digital technology is reshaping the industry. When the auction data of Dounan Flower Market was desensitized, it became the teaching material for college e-commerce majors; when the Kunming International Communications Business Entrance and Exit Bureau was built, the logistics timeliness of cross-border e-commerce of western enterprises increased by 40%, Yunnan is accelerating its digital economy track. In 2024, the added value of the core industries of the province's digital economy exceeded 200 billion yuan, accounting for 6.3% of GDP, becoming a new engine driving growth.

5. Open cooperation to build a community with a shared future

In Mohan-Moding Economic Cooperation Zone, the live broadcast base of the China-Laos Cross-border E-commerce Industrial Park, Laos anchors are selling coffee in fluent Chinese. In the first seven months of 2024, Yunnan's import and export volume to the five Mekong countries reached 65.94 billion yuan, and the cross-border e-commerce transaction volume increased by 120% year-on-year. This open trend is particularly significant along the China-Laos Railway: the Vientiane Saisetta Comprehensive Development Zone attracted 154 companies to settle in, with an annual output value of over US$2 billion; the Moding Special Economic Zone signed 891 companies with a total investment of over US$1 billion.

Deeper cooperation is underway. When Yunnan and the Mekong countries jointly build 34 international joint innovation platforms to carry out cross-border biodiversity protection; when the "Study in China and Study in Yunnan" brand attracts 12,000 South and Southeast Asian students, the bond of cultural exchanges is tightening. In 2024, Yunnan's import and export volume to South and Southeast Asian countries reached 114.62 billion yuan, exceeding the 100 billion yuan mark for seven consecutive years, and a new open economy system is being formed.

Standing on the observation deck of Yulong Snow Mountain and overlooking this rising land, what we see is not only the growth curve of GDP, but also the profound changes in the form of civilization. When green energy illuminates the road to industrial upgrading, when digital technology activates the potential for border development, and when open cooperation reconstructs the regional economic map, what Yunnan is writing is a great story about geographical reshaping, industrial reconstruction, and civilization rebirth. This ancient and young land is showing the world a sample of Chinese-style modernization to the Yunnan with the attitude of "leapfrog development and striving to be the first-class".