On September 26, during a visit to Yacheng Ancient Town, Lu Weiping, the director of the Yacheng Village Committee, shared his insights with a group of 20 overseas Chinese media representatives from 17 different countries. “Yacheng Ancient Town is elevated by four to five meters compared to its surroundings,” he explained. “This elevation helps it avoid flooding during the rainy season, even though it’s close to rivers and the sea. It exemplifies the wisdom of ancient peoples, serving as a valuable heritage for us today.”
The media representatives’ exploration of Yacheng Ancient Town unveiled the rich history of Sanya. Entering through the recently restored Wenming Gate, they were captivated by the stunning Shauxi Tower. Passing through the archway, they arrived at the Yacheng Academy, founded during the Song Dynasty. The academy quietly holds the legacies of influential historical figures, including General Lu Bode from the Western Han Dynasty, Lady Xian from the Sui Dynasty, and the great monk Jianzhen from the Tang Dynasty, weaving a narrative that spans over a thousand years.
Known as Yacheng in ancient times, Sanya has been depicted on Chinese maps dating back to the Western Han period. Founded in the Southern Song period, the ancient town has withstood the test of time through the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, with remnants of the ancient city wall from the Southern Song still visible. The historically rich Shui Nan Village, well-preserved architectural clusters in Bao Ping Village dating back to the Ming and Qing dynasties, and the contemporary Qilou Street influenced by tropical styles all contribute to Yacheng Ancient Town’s famed history of “two thousand years of establishment and having served as the administrative center under eight dynasties.”
While Yacheng Ancient Town tells the story of Sanya’s past, the region’s future is being actively shaped in a nearby tech city. Riding the wave of Hainan’s free trade port development, Sanya is harnessing its unique climate and coastal advantages to develop Sanya Yacheng Bay Technology City, which focuses on tropical crop breeding and deep-sea technology.
As the overseas media group ventured into Sanya Yacheng Bay Technology City, they met Li Yichao, a core researcher from the National South Breeding Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. He demonstrated a high-throughput plant phenotyping platform in a small experimental plot. “South breeding began in the 1950s, and over 70% of the crop varieties developed in China have undergone this process,” Li emphasized. “Thanks to Sanya’s tropical climate, we can significantly accelerate the breeding process for summer crops. After harvesting autumn crops like rice, corn, soybeans, and fruits, we bring our breeding materials to Hainan for further studies, positioning the South breeding base as an ‘incubator’ and ‘accelerator’ for new varieties.”
Li noted that today’s South breeding is marked by technological innovation. “Our high-throughput plant phenotyping platform employs various sensors, including hyperspectral and 3D laser technologies, to rapidly collect extensive data on plant height and leaf morphology in about ten minutes. This allows us to identify the superior specimens from a vast range, speeding up the breeding process significantly.”
The advancements in South breeding have been remarkable, and Sanya Yacheng Bay Technology City is also witnessing swift progress in deep-sea research. Engineer Weng Qihuang from Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s Hainan Research Institute introduced the latest innovation—a wave glider named “Deep Blue.” “Though small and seemingly unassuming, it has a significant role,” Weng remarked. This autonomous surface vehicle is entirely powered by wave energy, capable of operating at sea for over a year. It is designed for various applications, including oceanographic monitoring, ecological surveys, and underwater target detection, with mass production already in the works.
As of the end of August this year, Sanya Yacheng Bay Technology City has established three national-level research platforms, over 30 provincial-level platforms, and ten academic workstations, hosting thousands of registered enterprises and demonstrating remarkable industrial clustering effects.
The combination of history and technology in Sanya left a lasting impression on the overseas media representatives. “I always viewed Sanya as just a tourist destination. But after visiting Yacheng Bay Technology City, I realized it is also emerging as a tech hub with unique industries and tremendous growth potential,” said Zhang Meng, CEO of Yiben Media in Australia. Meanwhile, Chen Chunchun, an editor at the Philippine Business Journal, remarked that Yacheng Ancient Town highlighted Sanya’s commitment to cultural preservation and development, while Yacheng Bay Technology City showcased “the vibrancy of China’s technological innovation and its limitless possibilities for the future.”
