Driven by digital innovation and cultural development, Shangcheng district in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang province has achieved significant progress over the past 10 years, said Zhang Yan, Party secretary of the district, at a news conference last Saturday.

"The last decade is the period when Shangcheng district improved significantly in economic growth, the implementation of reforms, people's livelihoods as well as cultural development," Zhang said.

Figures show that Shangcheng's GDP increased from 111 billion yuan ($15.83 billion) to 241.75 billion yuan, while its fiscal revenue grew from 17.187 billion yuan to 37.779 billion yuan, in the past decade. In addition, a string of digital applications in transportation, social security, medical care, among other areas, has been introduced.

The development and changes in Shangcheng district have been most felt by its residents, as two thirds of its new fiscal revenue has been invested in improving people's life each year over the past decade.

According to Zhang, 11.964 billion yuan has been spent, accounting for 84.98 percent of the general public budget expenditure.

Moreover, Shangcheng district, which is home to many of the historical sites and buildings of the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), has spared no effort in promoting and inheriting the culture of the Song Dynasty (960-1279), a peak era of cultural development in Chinese history.

A center dedicated to the research of the Song Dynasty culture has been put into operation, and the restored Deshou Palace, where the first Southern Song emperor lived in retirement, as well as an accompanying museum will be open to the public by the end of September, Zhang said.