Xiongan New Area appoints chief

A senior official who has rich working experience in Beijing has been appointed to lead Xiongan New Area in North China, an area that will be key to the integration of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

Chen Gang, former Party chief of Beijing's Chaoyang district and a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China Beijing Committee - the municipality's top decision-making body - has taken the post of interim Party chief of Xiongan, Hebei province, according to Hebei Daily, the official newspaper of the province.

The report on Saturday did not mention the specific timing of Chen's appointment, but said he visited Rongcheng, Xiongxian and Anxin counties on Friday - the key areas that constitute Xiongan New Area - as the top official.

Official media reports said Chen became a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Hebei Committee on May 31.

Chen, 52, is a native of East China's Jiangsu province and worked in Beijing from 1990 to 2013. That experience is expected to be helpful in steering the development of Xiongan, as the new area is expected to accommodate noncapital functions that are being phased out of Beijing.

After earning a doctorate in chemistry from Peking University in 1990, Chen worked at the Beijing Glass Research Institute as an engineer.

Between 1990 and June 2013, he worked in the capital, serving in various positions, including head of the glass institute, senior official on the city's commerce and trade commission, and leader of Beijing's Chaoyang district.

In June 2013, his political career shifted to Guizhou province, where he served as Party chief of Guiyang, the provincial capital.