Hebei struggles for role amid pressure from neighbouring cities
Province often seen as lesser sibling of Beijing and Tianjin, but allowing market forces to play bigger part in economy could level playing field
Despite its large size and population, Hebei can get the short end of the policy stick when going up against neighbouring Beijing and Tianjin.
The three areas are often regarded as a single region known as "Jing-Jin-Ji" - their one-character names in Putonghua. For decades, there have been repeated calls for their joint development, but synergy has been limited.
"The administrative and political systems have created an artificial division in the region, where none existed in our economies or flow of people," said Wang Jinying, dean of the economics school at Hebei University. In the political sense, the province was inferior to the two municipalities, even though it has a population of 72 million, or roughly twice their combined number. "Thus, in the course of regional development, Hebei often must make sacrifices for the sake of its two neighbours," Wang said.
The top officials, or party chiefs, of Beijing and Tianjin are usually members of the Communist Party's powerful 25-member Politburo. But the head of Hebei has more junior political status - a seat on the party's roughly 350-member Central Committee.
To improve air quality, Beijing has ordered many of its big polluters out of the capital, which often means they go to the surrounding province. In the coming three years, another 1,200 large polluters are expected to be kicked out of Beijing.
Hebei, which, at 188,400 square kilometres, is more than 11 times the size of Beijing, might absorb some of these companies, as they create jobs and revenue for the government. But officials must also grapple with the environmental cost.