China’s science and technology sector has seen profound changes over the past decade, characterized by more original breakthroughs in core technologies, higher academic output in both quantity and quality, and assuming a larger role in supporting the national economy, officials said. The country’s ranking in the Global Innovation Index rose from 34th in 2012 to 11th in 2022, according to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Meanwhile, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said the nation’s research and development spending grew from CNY1.03 trillion in 2012 to more than CNY2.79 trillion last year, when the R&D budget for basic research reached a record CNY181.7 billion, 3.4 times higher than that in 2012. According to the Ministry of Science and Technology, China also boasts the world’s largest research workforce, with around 5.62 million full-time personnel last year, a rise of 1.7 times compared with 2012.
Wang Zhigang, Minister of Science and Technology, said in June these scientific indicators show that China has become an innovative country. However, Wang added that China still has many shortcomings in making original breakthroughs, training high-quality talent and obtaining key and core technologies. As a result, the country will need to improve basic research, strengthen the role of private companies as pillars of innovation and create new engines for high-quality development through scientific and technological breakthroughs, he added. As of this year, there are 173 national high-tech industrial development zones in China, 84 more than in 2012. Li Youping, Deputy Director of the Ministry’s Torch High Technology Industry Development Center, said that these zones are the vanguard of China’s innovation-driven development strategy as they hold much of the nation’s research resources and have contributed greatly to the national economy.
National high-tech zones are home to 84% of State Key Laboratories and 78% of national technological innovation centers, in addition to more than 4,400 research institutions. The gross industrial output of these high-tech development zones grew from CNY5.4 trillion in 2012 to CNY15.3 trillion last year, and they contributed 13.4% of China’s GDP. The number of high-tech companies in national high-tech zones also rose from less than 20,000 in 2012 to 115,000 last year, Li said. With these resources, high-tech zones have made numerous breakthroughs in quantum technologies, high-speed rail, the Beidou Navigation Satellite System, the C919 passenger jet, 5G telecommunications and other fields of strategic significance, the China Daily reports.
