BEIJING: China’s latest call to implement the innovation-driven development strategy will accelerate efforts to pursue breakthroughs in crucial technologies and safeguard the stability of global industrial and supply chains, amid the rising tide of technological protectionism in some countries, according to experts and company executives.
China is a strong supporter of globalization, but the professional division of labor in the world is facing risks as some countries attempt to hinder cooperation in high-tech sectors, said Shi Hongxiu, a professor of economics at the National Academy of Governance.
In such a context, China has no choice but to boost self-reliance in crucial technologies, Shi said, adding that President Xi Jinping’s call to implement the strategy is of great significance to encourage Chinese scientists, entrepreneurs and others to double down on pursuing indigenous innovation in pursuing the country’s high-quality development.
During a recent inspection tour of Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, Xi emphasized the importance of implementing the innovation-driven development strategy to “keep the lifeline of science and technology firmly in our own hands”.
Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, urged greater progress in independence and self-reliance in the sector of science and technology, to make the country’s development more secure. He also stressed the need to foster more advanced technologies and sectors and create new advantages in international competition.
Xi said that with the country’s continuing development, it is urgent to make breakthroughs in core technologies in key fields.
Wang Yiming, vice-chairman of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, said global competition in strategically important industries has intensified, and some countries have adopted an approach of being a “small courtyard with high walls” against China, aiming to contain its high-tech sectors.
“Now, pursuing self-reliance in core technologies is not a matter of development, but a matter of survival,” Wang said, adding that self-reliance is a prerequisite to guarantee national security.
“For a big country, self-reliance in key technologies is crucial to make China really strong. Innovation is the decisive factor in building a powerful modern socialist country,” Wang said. In an article published recently in People’s Daily, He Lifeng, head of the National Development and Reform Commission, wrote that Xi Jinping Thought on Socialist Economy with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era makes it clear that innovation-driven development is the primary driving force for China’s economic development.
–The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
