Wang Yanlin/Shanghai Daily news

Luwan District, in the heart of downtown Shanghai, has a golden opportunity to prosper in the run-up to World Expo 2010 Shanghai.

The district has an especially close bond with the World Expo, as the Enterprise Pavilion will be set up in the district, said Xu Yibo, the governor of Luwan District.

"The pavilion will enhance our position as one of the business centers in Shanghai and will initiate another round of changes leading us to distinguish our strengths," Xu told a recent conference.

In a master plan rolled out at the conference, Xu offered a blueprint with the World Expo in core.

First, Luwan will accelerate the development of its service industry, the creative sector in particular. The push for creative Expo development was inspired by Chen Xianjin, deputy director of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination.

"The theme development, the exhibition design and the way to showcase - everything about the World Expo links with creativity and innovation," said Chen, who encouraged Luwan District to go all out to develop creative industry.

In the plan, Luwan will prioritize the growth of consulting and advertising industries, with other sectors including accounting, finance, human resources, logistics and legal service in the spotlight.

To attract professionals in these circles, Luwan will continue to improve its business environment by providing better hardware such as first-rate offices and convenient traffic as well as better software - and red tape.

By 2010, there will be eight Metro lines going through Luwan District and two tunnels across the Huangpu River will be built to connect Luwan with the Pudong New Area.

They are part of the preparations for the World Expo, which requires convenient public traffic between the site of Enterprise Pavilion and that of National Pavilion.

But of course, they will help to raise the competitiveness of Luwan District in attracting companies to settle in the district. By 2010, Luwan expects to add 1.79 million square meters to its business office portfolio.

Currently, more than 2,000 enterprises in the service industry have their regional offices in Luwan District. They include 35 global leaders in the sector such as McKinsey & Company, Hewitt and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

They contribute 30 percent to the economic growth of Luwan, which reports an economic output of 7.01 billion yuan (US$934.7 million) in the first 10 months, expanding 16.1 percent year on year.

"To accelerate the growth of the service industry is in line with Shanghai's overall strategy as it is more environmentally friendly and energy conserving," said Xu. "A prosperous service industry will become a characteristic distinguishing Luwan from others."

Luwan is the first among other districts to set up a park of creative industry, the first to renovate old factory buildings into offices and the first to form a district-level association to boost the growth of creative industry.

Second, Luwan District will further develop its recreational industry - in a manner highlighting its cultural heritage. Much of the former French Concession lies in the Luwan District.

"It is also World Expo-driven as the grand event will create much demand for consumption and entertainment," said Xu. "We will have to meet the demands of people of different nationalities and cultural backgrounds. The solution is to focus on unique cultures of our own."

Luwan District is currently home to the popular shopping street Huaihai Road, and tourist shopping and bar haunt Xintiandi.

It was built in an old neighborhood and ultra modern shops, bars and restaurants nestle in faux traditional shikumen (stone-gated) houses. Meanwhile, stylish old buildings, signature scenic attractions, can be found here.