Xining City, anciently known as Qingtang City, Xiping County, Shanshan Prefecture, and Xia Du, is a prefecture-level city and provincial capital under the jurisdiction of Qinghai Province, and an important central city in Northwest China as determined by the State Council. As of October 2022, the city has five districts and two counties under its jurisdiction, with a total area of 7,660 square kilometers, and as of the end of 2023, the resident population of Xining City was 2,481,000 people.
Xining City is located in northwestern China, the eastern part of Qinghai Province, Huangshui in the middle reaches of the valley basin, is the eastern gateway to the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, the ancient "Silk Road" south and "Tangfan Road" must be the place, since ancient times, is the key to northwestern transportation and military, known as the "Key to the West Sea". "Key to the West Sea", the sea and Tibet, known as the throat, is one of the world's high-altitude cities, Qinghai Province, political, economic, scientific and educational, cultural, transportation and communication center, but also the State Council to determine the opening of the inland cities, the Central Military Commission, Xining Joint Logistics Support Center site.
Xining has a long history and culture, unique natural resources, colorful folk customs, and is a bright pearl on the Tibetan Plateau, taking the meaning of "peace in the western frontier". It has been awarded the honorary titles of National Sanitary City, Top 200 Characteristic and Charming Cities in China, China's Outstanding Tourist City, China's Advanced City in Landscaping and Greening, National Forest City, National Civilized City, etc., and it is a pilot city for the construction of "Waste-Free City".
In May 2018, the State Council issued the Lanzhou-Xining City Cluster Development Plan, which focuses on integrating into the construction of the "Belt and Road", actively promotes high-quality and characteristic development, and fosters and develops the Lanzhou-Xining City Cluster into a city that supports homeland security and ecological security. In June 2020, it was selected by the Central Committee for Rule of Law as the first batch of national rule of law government construction demonstration regions and projects.
In 2023, Xining's gross regional product will be 180.113 billion yuan, an increase of 8.6% year-on-year at comparable prices, higher than that of the province by 3.3 percentage points.