China calls on private sector to beef up investment in basic science as it seeks to become tech powerhouse
- China has made clear in recent years its ambition to become a global tech superpower, with excellence in science one of the main battlefronts
Beijing has called on the private sector to beef up its investment in basic research, which is seen as a foundation for China to cut its reliance on foreign technology and achieve its ambition of becoming a global tech superpower.
China’s Ministry of Science and Technology pledged to encourage local governments and enterprises to fund more projects focused on scientific research and development in spite of a slowing economy.
“China will invest more in basic research,” said Science and Technology Minister Wang Zhigang during the ongoing National People’s Congress in Beijing on Monday, adding that his ministry will seek to motivate local governments, enterprises and industries to boost their investment in this area.
Regarded by Wang as “the source of all technological innovation” and currently a “weakness of China’s science and technology sector”, basic research has now become a priority as the nation seeks to catch up as a technology leader. Basic research aims to improve scientific theories — which can then be used to improve applied technologies and techniques.
Figures from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development show that China has been closing the gap in science and tech spending in recent decades. Its research and development funding accounted for 0.893 per cent of the nation’s GDP in 2000, and it rose to 2.1 per cent in 2018, ranking 18th on the list. Israel topped the list in 2018, with research funding at 4.3 per cent of GDP.
