The plan involves building a hub for offshore financing and duty-free shopping, as well as using lower taxes and reduced visa requirements to help draw in foreign businesses and tourists.

[16] Hainan Island was recorded by Chinese officials in 110 BC, when the Western Han dynasty established a military garrison there following the arrival of General Lu Bode.

Over the course of many centuries, dynastic Chinese ruling authorities exiled individuals condemned by the imperial courts as criminals or political dissidents were frequently banished to Hainan island and northern Vietnam, regions that were both integral parts governed typically under the jurisdiction of Guangdong province during different Chinese dynasties, where they were subjected to harsh labor in the tropical climate as a form of punishment.

One of the most famous exiled individuals was Su Shi, a well-known intellectual, poet, and politician of the Song era, who offended many of his colleagues and superiors in the royal court.

After the 11th century AD, large numbers of Han Chinese people from Fujian and Guangdong began migrating to the Leizhou peninsula and Hainan island to settle down their roots by seeking greener pastures on new land to establish themselves.

The money was taken from the 1983 central government funds destined for the construction of the island's transportation infrastructure (roads, railways, airports, harbors) over the next ten years.

[citation needed] On 1 October 1984, it became the Hainan Administrative Region (海南行政区), with its own People's Government, and finally as a province separate from Guangdong four years later.

Announced by state-owned media Xinhua News Agency, Hainan will "basically establish a free trade port system by 2025 and become more mature by 2035.

"[19][20] South China Morning Post described such an initiative as an effort of PRC to "replace Hong Kong as the trading entrepôt" while Cheng Shi of ICBC International has refused to accept such a claim.

[29] In modern times, however, the small island's natural balance has been threatened, largely due to the introduction of exotic species, as well as human impacts from tourism, deforestation, and the use of herbicides, pesticides and other such pollutants.

), as well as cashew (Anacardium occidentale), mango (Mangifera indica), fiber agave (Agave sisalana), pineapple (Ananas comosus), bitter melon (Momordica charantia), ivy gourd (Coccinia grandis), giant taro (Alocasia macrorrhizos), Asian taro (A. odora), Malabar spinach (Basella alba) and papaya (Carica papaya).

At least 25-30 species belonging to the order Zingiberales grow on Hainan, including numerous types of ginger, galangal, canna, turmeric (Curcuma sp.)

Notable botanical species include: Even with over ten million human inhabitants, Hainan contains several protected areas and wildlife preserves.

The most ubiquitous smaller species on the island include such animals as frogs, toads, geckos, skinks, and butterflies; as with many adjacent tropical regions, the Arthropoda and invertebrates are well-represented here, with mosquitoes naturally being very common at certain times of the year.

The swarms of biting, flying insects actually play a key role in island food chains and ecosystems, not only being consumed by many other species (such as bats and birds) but serving as pollinators for many types of flowering plants.

Hainan's lakes and waterways are populated with various freshwater fishes, such as carp and catfish, whose fry readily consume both mosquito eggs and larvae (laid on the water's surface) for sustenance.

Larger native mammals include the Asiatic black or "moon" bear (Ursus thibetanus), sambar (Rusa unicolor), Eurasian otter (L. lutra), the crab-eating mongoose (Herpestes urva) and the leopard cat (Felis bengalensis), which are considered a species of conservation concern.

These gentle giants of the sea had been hunted heavily and were wiped out by Japanese whalers (established whaling stations on various sites on Chinese and Korean coasts including Hainan and Daya Bay).

While the containment of the South China Sea Islands means that Hainan Province has a very large water body, it has a disproportionally small land area.

Hainan's elevation to province-level status (1988), however, was accompanied by its designation as China's largest "special economic zone", the intent being to hasten the development of the island's plentiful resources.

The hot Hainan yellow lantern chili, a variety similar to the scotch bonnet, is unique to the island, and is grown in the southeast and southwest.

Countries included among the 59 are: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, Spain, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, UAE, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Those non-Hainan residents who wish to purchase a house in Haikou, Sanya and Qionghai must prove that they have a minimum of one family member who has been paying taxes or social security for at least 5 years.

[93] Established prior to this announcement, and currently in existence, are the following economic and technological development zones: In June 2020, China set the corporate income tax rate for Hainan Free Trade port enterprises engaged in specified manufacturing activities.

[95] According to the law, by 2025, feng guan (封关, which is directly translated into "customs closure") will be fully implemented and all goods sold to other parts of China from Hainan would be treated as imports, in a similar way as Hong Kong SAR.

A bridge or tunnel received continued consideration in 2018, as travel by air or ferry can leave residents and visitors isolated when bad weather sets in.

This initiative in Haikou has seen entire neighborhoods demolished and rebuilt, sanitation improved, illegal structures used for business removed, roadside vendors banned, roads and sidewalks replaced, and new street crossings with traffic lights installed.

Foreign students studying at overseas universities are allowed to engage in regular internships at Hainan's star-rated hotels, hospitals, international schools, and other entities.

The influx of large numbers of mainlanders after 1950 – particularly in the 1970s, when young Chinese from southern Guangdong were assigned to state farms to help develop Hainan, and in the 1980s, when thousands more came to take advantage of the economic opportunities offered – has perpetuated the frontier atmosphere on the island.

Numerous events are hosted or sponsored on the island, including: One of China's satellite launch centers is located in Hainan east of the city of Wenchang.