10/02/06

China unveils plans for science-based development

China aims to use science to eliminate poverty by 2050 Copyright: IRD / Montoroi

By: Wu Chong

We encourage you to republish this article online and in print, it’s free under our creative commons attribution license, but please follow some simple guidelines:

You have to credit our authors.
You have to credit SciDev.Net — where possible include our logo with a link back to the original article.
You can simply run the first few lines of the article and then add: “Read the full article on SciDev.Net” containing a link back to the original article.
If you want to also take images published in this story you will need to confirm with the original source if you're licensed to use them.
The easiest way to get the article on your site is to embed the code below.

For more information view our media page and republishing guidelines.

The full article is available here as HTML.

Press Ctrl-C to copy

<div class="article-wrap">
<div id="article-introduction">
<h1>China unveils plans for science-based development</h1>
<h4>By: Wu Chong</h4>
</div>
<br />
<br />

<div id="article-body">
<p><P>[BEIJING] China intends to massively increase its scientific prowess and lift its population out of poverty by 2050, according to two key policies announced yesterday (9 February).</P><br />
<P>A strategy issued by the State Council will increase annual investment in research and development to 900 billion yuan (US$112 billion) by 2020. </P><br />
<P>This would boost the proportion of China’s gross domestic product spent on research from today’s 1.3 per cent to 2.5 per cent.</P><br />
<P>A separate plan, issued by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, lays out a blueprint for China to eradicate poverty and extend life expectancy to 80 years by 2050.</P><br />
<P>Gao Changlin, a senior researcher at the National Research Centre for Science and Technology for Development, says the State Council’s strategy is important not only for its increase in investment but also because it states explicitly that China will use science as a tool for development.</P><br />
<P>The strategy identifies research priorities including energy, health, agriculture, biotechnology and nanotechnology.</P><br />
<P>It says that 60 per cent of China’s economic growth should be based on science and technology by 2020, and that the country’s reliance on foreign technology will drop to below 30 per cent, compared to more than 50 per cent today.</P><br />
<P>To achieve this, China will enact policies such as tax breaks to encourage private investment in R&D. The government will also encourage small and medium high-tech companies to go public overseas, says Gao, who helped in researching the strategy.</P><br />
<P>Gao told SciDev.Net that state funding for research and development should grow faster than private investment, adding that in most developed nations, government funding accounts for about 35 per cent of the total, compared to 30 per cent in China.</P>According to the CAS strategy, the lowest monthly salary in China will exceed US$1,300 by 2050. Its aim of transforming China into a knowledge-based society will hinge on millions of people moving from the countryside to suburban areas. <BR><BR></p>

</div>
<div class="quick-links-wrapper">
<h3>You might also like</h3>
[related-articles]
</div>
<p>This article was originally published on <a href="https://www.scidev.net" target="_blank">SciDev.Net</a>. Read the <a href="https://www.scidev.net/global/news/china-unveils-plans-for-sciencebased-development/" target="_blank">original article</a>.</p>
<script type="text/javascript">
(function(e,t,n,r,i,s,o){e["GoogleAnalyticsObject"]=i;e[i]=e[i]||function(){(e[i].q=e[i].q||[]).push(arguments)},e[i].l=1*new Date;s=t.createElement(n),o=t.getElementsByTagName(n)[0];s.async=1;s.src=r;o.parentNode.insertBefore(s,o)})(window,document,"script","//www.google-analytics.com/ga.js","ga");var _gaq=_gaq||[];var _gaq=_gaq||[];_gaq.push(["_setAccount","UA-3223906-8"],["_trackEvent","article interaction","republished","https://www.scidev.net/global/news/china-unveils-plans-for-sciencebased-development/",null,true])
</script>
</div>

[BEIJING] China intends to massively increase its scientific prowess and lift its population out of poverty by 2050, according to two key policies announced yesterday (9 February).

A strategy issued by the State Council will increase annual investment in research and development to 900 billion yuan (US$112 billion) by 2020.

This would boost the proportion of China’s gross domestic product spent on research from today’s 1.3 per cent to 2.5 per cent.

A separate plan, issued by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, lays out a blueprint for China to eradicate poverty and extend life expectancy to 80 years by 2050.

Gao Changlin, a senior researcher at the National Research Centre for Science and Technology for Development, says the State Council’s strategy is important not only for its increase in investment but also because it states explicitly that China will use science as a tool for development.

The strategy identifies research priorities including energy, health, agriculture, biotechnology and nanotechnology.

It says that 60 per cent of China’s economic growth should be based on science and technology by 2020, and that the country’s reliance on foreign technology will drop to below 30 per cent, compared to more than 50 per cent today.

To achieve this, China will enact policies such as tax breaks to encourage private investment in R&D. The government will also encourage small and medium high-tech companies to go public overseas, says Gao, who helped in researching the strategy.

Gao told SciDev.Net that state funding for research and development should grow faster than private investment, adding that in most developed nations, government funding accounts for about 35 per cent of the total, compared to 30 per cent in China.

According to the CAS strategy, the lowest monthly salary in China will exceed US$1,300 by 2050. Its aim of transforming China into a knowledge-based society will hinge on millions of people moving from the countryside to suburban areas.