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BEIJING, July 11-- Every evening, workers gather in the Shenzhen Industrial Park in Kashgar, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, waiting for buses to take them home. Companies based in the park, including electronic components makers and clothing manufacturers, have hired more than 3,000 workers from nearby villages and towns, making the industrial park one of the most bustling areas in the region. A large number of highly competitive companies from outside the region have set up factories or subsidiaries in Xinjiang under the "pairing assistance" program, helping local residents find jobs close to their homes. The program has allowed 19 provinces and municipalities to offer financial and personnel support to remote Xinjiang, building new infrastructure and funding local industry. According to the National Development and Reform Commission, China's economic planner, since late 2017, the provinces and municipalities have allocated more than 13 billion yuan (about 1.91 billion U.S. dollars) to promote local industries and created more than 500,000 jobs in Xinjiang. Thanks to support from other parts of the country, Xinjiang has seen rapid economic growth in the past few years, with infrastructure projects bringing the region closer to the rest of China. According to official data, Xinjiang's regional economy grew by 7.6 percent in 2016, 0.9 percentage points above the national average. Per capita disposable income grew 8.9 percent to 18,355 yuan, also faster than the national rate. | 
