An opening ceremony of the Global Talent Innovation and Entrepreneurship Summit is held in Shanghai, Sept 29, 2021. - Xinhua
https://youtu.be/Gyc1OHJq_Lg
Technology and Innovation in China's Path to 2035
Xi wants country to rank among world’s best as strategic force in science
BEIJING: President Xi Jinping has set out a vision to develop China into a global hub for talented people and innovation, with steps to train and bring in more top-flight professionals to enable them to fulfil their potential.
Speaking at a central work conference on human resources – held in Beijing on Monday and Tuesday – Xi called for greater emphasis to be given to training talent and quicker steps to establish a competitive edge in human resources.
As China edges closer to the grand goal of realising its great rejuvenation, the nation is more eager for talented people than at any period in history, said Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission.
The country’s competitive strength and national development and rejuvenation hinge on the fostering of more talented people, he said.
Xi summed up key experiences of the nation’s work related to talent in eight areas, including adhering to the Party’s across-the-board leadership, following the strategy of talent-led growth and focusing on the forefront of global science and technology, the economy, the major demands of the country and people’s health.
He unveiled the nation’s goals in this area over the next 15 years..
By 2025, China will see a sharp increase in spending on research and development, secure important progress in developing a leading force in scientific and technological innovation, bring together more top scientists and have a large number of talented people in core technologies..
China will establish a talent system in keeping with high-quality growth and have stronger appeal to high-calibre talent globally by 2030..
By 2035, China aims to rank among the world’s top nations in terms of being a strategic force in science and technology and have high-calibre talent, he said..
The president proposed building a leading area for high-calibre talent in Beijing, Shanghai and the Guangdong-hong Kong-macau Greater Bay Area, saying that the nation’s high-quality resources should prioritise support for a group of national laboratories and new research institutions..
In deepening the institutional reform for talent development, Xi highlighted the need to give play to the role of employers in training and bringing in talented people and enabling them to fulfil their potential..
Scientists must be given greater say in deciding what technological routes to take, allocation of funds and resources, he said, adding that it is equally important to ensure that scientific and research programmes can yield outcomes..
Xi urged stronger efforts to train scientists and enable them to play a more important role, adding that it is important to find more scientific workers with broad horizons, strong foresight and judgment..
The role of national laboratories, research institutions, high-level universities and leading tech companies must be amplified to develop a large number of leading scholars and innovation teams, he said..
The nation must focus the strength of its talent policies on young specialists while enabling them to take major responsibility, he added..
China, with the world’s biggest higher-education system, is capable of training a large number of high-calibre talented people, giving rise to leading scholars, he said..
Higher-education institutions, especially top universities, must play a major role in training talented people in the areas of fundamental research, with measures to develop a host of training bases in fundamental science, he said..
Xi also underlined the need to give rise to more philosophers, social scientists and artists, saying that stronger measures must be taken to enhance international exchanges of talent. — China Daily/ ANN.
Botched Afghan retreat reveals an America struggling to contain China
`
Unable to better China in positive competition and with military
options unfeasible, the US can only fall back on the ‘moral high
ground’. But in its hasty Afghan withdrawal, to focus on China, the US
risks losing even this - Dr. Zhengxu Wang
World main countries 2021 Q1 GDP Growth Infographic: Wu Tiantong/GT
Xi Jinping: Chinese people will never allow foreign bullying, oppressing or subjugating
https://youtu.be/oS5QqS9C_xw
https://youtu.be/J1s1evS3xJc
As China gears up to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on July 1, one of the greatest achievements of the CPC to be highlighted is what has been widely described as an economic miracle. From a backward agrarian economy in the early days of the People's Republic of China (PRC) to an economic and technological powerhouse today, China's economic success story under the CPC's leadership has arguably become the global story of the century and the envy of the world.
The secret codes behind such miraculous achievements have also become a hotly debated topic around the world. This article will decode those codes.
Born into a poor rural family with per capita disposal income of less than 50 yuan ($7.80), the PRC, now in its 70s, has seen the income reading top 32,000 yuan as of 2020. Behind the 640-plus fold surge is the country's rapid ascent to a global behemoth in almost every aspect in an unparalleled timeframe and path.
What are the CPC's secret codes to economic success?
To answer that, the Global Times conducted an extensive examination of the CPC's economic policymaking at several critical junctions and interviewed domestic and foreign experts. Four key themes stand out.
World main countries 2021 Q1 GDP Growth Infographic: Wu Tiantong/GT
Bold planning, effective execution
"The five-year planning is the major driving factor that boosted the Chinese economy to the No. 2 in the world. This system is effective and reliable in focusing on and predicting how the economy performs and which necessary adjustments are required to finetune it along the way," David Monyae, director of the Centre for Africa-China Studies at the University of Johannesburg, told the Global Times.
Since its beginning in the 1950s, there have been 14 five-year plans (FYP) - each marks a significant shift in China's economic policies and advances in social and economic development.
The first FYP, which started in 1953, envisioned the industrialization of China, starting the 60-plus year journey of creating an economic constellation that's being renovated every five years.
"China has led a different path than the West's laissez-faire capitalism or its so-called marketization. China maintains more compelling institutional prowess than the West," said Cong Yi, dean of School of Marxism under Tianjin University of Finance and Economics, citing the Party's strong ability to make strategic development plans that integrate short-term plans into medium and long-term ones.
After initially drawing on the Soviet Union's five-year planning experience, the CPC soon realized the limitations of the Soviet model and some of its shortcomings and mistakes, and then decided to independently explore a socialist construction road suited to China's national conditions, which, coupled with laser focus and effective execution, led to one milestone after another.
The 13th CPC National Congress in 1987 made a proposition of a three-step development strategy that envisaged doubling the gross national product (GNP) between 1981 and 1990, doubling its GNP again by the end of the 20th century and per capita GNP reaching moderately developed country levels by the middle of this century.
Buoyed by unprecedented reformist drives since the country's grand reform and opening-up in 1978, the second-step target was hit at the conclusion of the Eighth FYP (1991-95), five years ahead of schedule.
In yet another milestone, the Third Plenary Session of the 14th CPC Central Committee in November 1993 passed the decision on certain issues in establishing a socialist market economic system. With the guidance of the Ninth FYP (1996-2000), the country made good the transition from a planned economy to a socialist market economy in 2000, a prelude to its accession to the WTO in December 2001.
In the latest proof of the effectiveness of the FYP, just as planned, the alternation of the 13th FYP ended 2020 and the newest FYP starting this year is on course to deliver a victory for its first centenary goal of building a moderately well-off society on the CPC's 100th anniversary.
"The main feature of the five-year plans is the top-level design, which is holistic, macroscopic, forward looking, anticipatory and binding," Zhao Xuejun, director of the Modern Economic History of China Research Center under Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) Institute of Economics, told the Global Times.
Today, China's FYPs have become a closely watched policy document around the world as it provides a valuable window into China's economic policies and development goals.
This year, global attention was focused on the 14th FYP ending 2025, which is set to pave the way for the second centenary goal to be attained - building a modern socialist power by 2049 when the PRC turns 100.
File photo:VCG
Seeking truth from facts
However, even as China's economy advanced in an overall steady pace as planned, there were no shortages of difficulties and mistakes over the past several decades - from some early decisions and policies that were against market rules to the "decade of the catastrophe," to the blind pursuit of extensive and high-speed growth over a certain period of time.
In overcoming those challenges and mistakes, the CPC showed its ability to "seek truth from facts" - a phrase that epitomizes the Party's flexibility and ability to objectively pinpoint the problems, experts said.
That ability was highlighted in the Party's response to crises during the Great Leap Forward era, which coincided with the Three Years of Natural Disasters (1959-61) and the breakdown of Sino-Soviet Union relations.
During the period, exaggeration about production prevailed across China, being called "launching satellites," and from wheat, rice and steel, places and reports started to boast of false high productions. The economic and social campaign that aimed for a rapid industrialization to steer the-then poor economy into a modern communist society appeared to have wrong-footed the economy.
Instead of turning a blind eye to the truth, the CPC Central Committee urged maximum efforts to correct all deviations in an urgent instruction letter in November 1960 and a Party plenum in January 1961 decided on the implementation of an economic adjustment.
As the economy ran its course of adjustment at the end of 1965 and began its third FYP, the Cultural Revolution began, putting the country in "10 years of catastrophe" until 1976.
Then came another turn - the 11th National Congress of the CPC in August 1977 declared the end of the Cultural Revolution and reiterated that the Party's fundamental task was to build the country into a socialist modern power.
"The CPC has a strong mechanism of self-correction; internally it came from the democratic system of the Party, and essentially it is built on the Party's tenet of seeking interest for the people and re-juvenation for the nation," Zhao told the Global Times.
The perseverance with seeking truth comes across as building the economy's resilience that has dissolved various challenges and crises, such as the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, the 2008 global financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, into hiccups which only result in increased economic sophistication, observers noted.
In response to the crises, the CPC was able to seek truth from facts and be flexible, as well as to be free from prejudice and ideological bias, encouraging local exploration and innovation, Zhao said.
In another striking and more recent example, the Party has managed to bid farewell to an unhealthy obsession with GDP growth that regards GDP statistics as the core or even the only indicator for assessing government performance, which stoked concerns over high GDP numbers at the expense of the environment and economic imbalance.
For instance, in August 2014, East China's Fujian Province cancelled the GDP assessment in 34 counties and cities, and implemented the evaluation method of giving priority to agriculture and ecological protection.
Aerial
photo taken on Sept. 17, 2020 shows the Houhai area in Nanshan District
of Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province. Photo:xinhua
Reform and opening-up
Just as the CPC is very swift in correcting mistakes, it is also profoundly persistent and steadfast in carrying out scientific policies - another pillar of the CPC's economic success.
The milestone Third Plenum of the 11th CPC Central Committee in December 1978 has been widely known as a starting point for the economy's 40-plus years of reform and opening-up, ushering in a transition from a class struggle-themed Party platform to a focus on economic building.
The main resistance force came from people's fear of capitalism, thinking that opening to the outside world would alchemize New China. With keen observation on the world's development in economy and science and technology, Deng Xiaoping launched the opening-up policy, pushing aside all hesitance and skepticism.
In early 1982, the Shekou industrial zone in Shenzhen was criticized by some for planning to hire a foreign business manager. When Deng learned this, he immediately applauded the decision, saying that it's OK to hire foreigners as managers and it is no traitorous behavior.
The reform of the country's state-owned enterprises (SOE) is an evocative story of the country's undaunted approach to boosting its economy.
By 1987, 80 percent of the country's state-owned enterprises (SOEs) adopted various forms of the contracted managerial responsibility system. Some enterprises even began to undertake shareholding system reforms.
Graphic:GT
In the first quarter of 1996, the country's 68,800 SOEs, as a whole, recorded their first net loss since the founding of the PRC.
After the pain comes the result. From 1989 to 2001, though the number of SOEs dropped to 46,800 from 102,300, their total industrial added value increased to 1.47 trillion yuan from 389.5 billion yuan, surging 11.67 percent annually.
Despite tremendous success over the past several decades, difficulties and hurdles never ceased to test China's commitment to the reform and opening-up policies today.
The thorn-covered yet high-yielding road to reform and opening-up, as such, was being paved as efforts to liberate thoughts and the bold push for innovation trickled in. With an endeavor to sustain liberation on multiple fronts for there to be even deeper reforms, China finally pushed through.
In 2020, China overtook the US to become the world's top destination for new foreign direct in-vestment. In the first five months of 2021 alone, China attracted 18,497 new foreign-funded firms and 481 billion yuan in foreign capital.
Graphic:GT
Self-sufficiency, innovation-driven
However, increasingly opening up to the outside world does not mean China will not mitigate seri-ous risks for its national and economic security. Since the earlier days of the CPC's leadership, self-sufficiency in many core sectors such as food and technology was a major focus, which has also become a key code to the CPC's success.
In an early sign of a self-reliant approach to development, by 1964, the self-sufficiency rate of China's main machinery and equipment had reached over 90 percent. With construction of the Daqing oilfield completed and Shengli and Dagang oilfields under development, China achieved total self-sufficiency in oil by 1965.
Since then, that quest for self-sufficiency in many areas, including technological innovation, has never stopped and has helped lift China to a world-leading global technological power in many areas - from 5G to high-speed rails, and from new-energy vehicles to space exploration technologies.
Just last week, China pulled off the country's first-ever automated fast rendezvous and docking of a manned spacecraft with China's orbiting space station core cabin, after the Shenzhou-12 manned spacecraft was successfully launched on the Long March-2F Y12 carrier rocket.
China's considerable technological prowess has already unnerved the US, which has been a domi-nant player for decades.
The CPC's focus on self-sufficiency and innovation-driven strategy was particularly notable in the country's efforts to mitigate an increasingly hostile external environment marked by a relentless attempt by the US to contain China's rise.
Even before the US' crackdown campaign, the focus on self-dependence and technological innova-tion was highlighted as the CPC convened its 19th National Congress in October 2017, where a new era of China's socialism was declared. The Party's 18th National Congress also introduced an innovation-driven development strategy.
Since then, in a series of meetings and top policy documents, the CPC has constantly stepped up efforts to pursue efficiency in a wide range of areas, from semiconductors to crop seeds.
"Against the backdrop of an intensifying China-US rivalry, China may face rising risks of high-tech blocks, supply chain obstruction, or further trade disputes. What China needs to do is focus on its own business and concentrate on overcoming the difficulties in key technologies, equipment, raw materials and design software that are being held back by Western countries, and coordinate devel-opment and security," said Zhao.
As these new challenges emerge, while China is no longer the backward, war-torn country it was 7 decades ago, challenges and risks, both domestic and foreign, remain. With the CPC's firm leader-ship and its proven successful economic policymaking, China is better positioned than ever to reach its bold development goal of becoming a modern socialist power in the coming decades, analysts said.
Beijing's 14th five-year economic plan and 2035 goal promise a new era of development for China and the greater wealth for the world.
Momentous meeting: China’s top political advisory body wrapped up its annual session recently.
— Xinhua
Review of China's achievements in 2020
US’s intention to destroy China will be a difficult process
https://youtu.be/_3tjcoudjbI
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CHINA’s most important meetings of the year – “Two Sessions” – have unveiled Beijing’s medium- and long-term economic goals and strategies that experts believe will not only boost China’s quality development and modernisation but will also benefit the world, in particular Asean.
As Malaysia is part of the 10-nation Asean, China’s biggest trading partner, it will gain from Beijing’s strategies as long as Putrajaya continues to embrace foreign policies deemed as friendly – or at least non-toxic – towards Beijing.
The “Two Sessions” or Lianghui refers to the annual meetings of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).
The NPC is the Parliament where laws and policies are adopted, while the CPPCC is the top political consultative body comprising the Communist Party of China (CPC) and other interest groups that provide policy input for the NPC.
At the start of the NPC in Beijing on March 5, Premier Li Keqiang, while unveiling the 14th five- year plan (2021-2025), announced that China had set an economic growth target of more than 6% for 2021 – with emphasis on high-quality development, green economy, modernisation and innovation.
The GDP of China, the first country to be hit by and recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, grew by only 2.3% in 2020. Still, China was the only major economy to post growth last year.
Li also announced that China – the world’s second largest economy in the world – wants to double the size of its economy to 202 trillion yuan (RM128 trillion) in 2035, from 102 trillion yuan (RM64.5 trillion) in 2020.
Over the next five years, Beijing will aim to keep unemployment low, strive for 7% annual growth in research and development spending and forge a new development pattern.
China also aims to become an advanced manufacturing powerhouse by 2025. This involves upgrading its manufacturing capabilities in rare earth, robotics, aircraft engines, new energy vehicles, high-end medical equipment and innovative medicine, aviation, high-speed rail and industrial applications of the BeiDou satellite system.
Ultimately, China wants to reduce reliance on foreign technologies and enhance competitiveness against the United States after being trapped in a long and acrimonious US-initiated trade war.
According to a Xinhua commentary, the CPC wants to lay the foundation to transform China into “a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious and beautiful” by the middle of the 21st century.
To double its GDP, China needs to achieve an average annual growth rate of 4.7-5.0% in the next 15 years, according to estimates of economists.
Prof Justin Lin Yifu, a top economist in planning Beijing’s poverty eradication programmes, projects that China will become a high-income nation by 2025.
The dean at the Institute of New Structural Economics of Peking University told Chinese newspaper Global Times that his optimistic prognosis “is based on China’s complete industrial chain, rich industrial range and advantages in new technologies, including 5G and artificial intelligence”.
Chen Fengying, a research fellow at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told Global Times the five-year plan has taken into account risks and challenges, particularly those posed by the US and its allies that try to contain China’s rise and technology advancement.
Despite challenges ahead, Beijing has demonstrated that it is capable of achieving targets. A good example is shown in the eradication of extreme poverty in 2020, achieved on the back of economic disruption induced by Covid-19.
While China’s economic strategies aim primarily at developing domestic growth, they are seen as benefiting investors and foreign nations.
“Given the size of the Chinese economy and the important role it plays in the global economy, the 14th Plan also offers a bright spot for the global economy in this difficult time, ” Bai Ming, deputy director of the International Market Research Institute, told Global Times.
Indeed, China has contributed about 30% in global economic growth on average over the past 20 years. Within the next five to 10 years, China is expected to contribute 25-30% to global economic growth, says Gobal Times.
Christina Zhu, an economist at Moody’s Analytics, notes that Beijing plans to increase spending on fundamental research by 10.6% this year and encourages manufacturers to invest in research and development by offering greater tax benefits.
“China will further open up its domestic market to foreign businesses and investors. It has lifted restrictions in areas such as high-end manufacturing, new energy and service industries, and has committed to trimming down the negative list and providing a level playing field for foreign enterprises, ” she writes in a note.
Foreign trade stability and growth in foreign investment are critical to China’s ambition for greater connectivity with the world economy, she adds in the note also issued to Sunday Star.
Judging from what China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said, Malaysia and its Asean neighbours can expect to enjoy preferential treatment from China.
Last Sunday, Wang Yi told a press conference: “China is willing to work with Asean to build an even closer community with a shared future and another 30 years of even greater cooperation.
“In the new development stage, China is like an express train with greater driving force and load capacity. China welcomes all countries to get on board and move towards a future of shared prosperity.”
Locally, the Associated Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM) sees Asean becoming a strong beneficiary of Beijing’s economic plan and goals.
“With China regaining its strong growth momentum in 2021, its economic strategies will help to support Malaysia and Asean’s economic recovery from the pandemic, ” says Tan Sri Ter Leong Yap, president of ACCCIM.
The trade group sees China as intensifying external connectivity via the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of President Xi Jinping to accelerate China’s involvement in international trade.
Touching on Malaysia, ACCCIM notes that China has become Malaysia’s largest trading partner for the 12th consecutive year in 2020, with total trade valued at RM329.8bil or 18.6% of Malaysia’s total trade. Exports to China accounted for 16.2% while imports from China stood at 21.5%.
In 2020, China’s investment in Malaysia jumped 43.8% to RM5.8bil to become Malaysia’s sixth largest foreign investor.
“China’s long-term sustainable economic growth and greater emphasis on quality and technology-driven investment will open up more trade and investment cooperation in the areas that can help Malaysia’s industrial development.
“China’s signature BRI can continue to be a catalyst to spur more China investment to Malaysia and Asean, ” Ter tells Sunday Star.
The growing influence of China on the global stage will boost China-Asean economic cooperation, which can be further cemented by the signing of the 15-member Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), he adds.
Malaysia’s development focus on IR 4.0, digitalisation, 5-G technology, e-commerce, green investment, renewable energy, electric cars and smart transport infrastructure also means that both nations can work together to foster win-win deals.
Ter opines: “Malaysia can learn a lot from China in high technology, digitalisation, agri-tech and the building of smart and eco-industrial parks.
“We hope that the Prime Minister’s planned visit to China could further strengthen bilateral relations, taking it to a new level of win-win partnership. Both countries have come a long way in deepening trade and investment flows, enhanced connectivity and people-people exchange.”
For Prof Datuk Dr Chin Yew Sin, China’s BRI strategy under its 14th five-year plan could help Beijing achieve its economic targets.
“Between 2013 and 2019, China had signed with 138 counties, including Asean countries, for a total of 790 BRI projects. These overseas BRI projects undertaken by China will help spur the economic growth rate of China by about one per cent annually.
“The BRI projects implemented in Malaysia and other Asean countries will enhance the economic growth rates of these countries also, ” says Dr Chin, adviser for the Global One Belt One Road Association (Asia Pacific Region).
Dr Chin believes China’s demand for Asean’s natural produces and manufactured products will be even greater when it overtakes the US to become the largest economy in the world before 2035.
“By then, Malaysia will be able to export more of its electrical and electronic products, palm oil, rubber, oil and gas, timber products and others to China due to a higher demand of these goods.
“In addition, Malaysia will be able to attract more direct investments from China because of its long-standing good relationship with China, ” he adds.
Malaysia was the first Asean country to establish diplomatic ties with China in 1974 and Beijing has never failed to repeat its gratitude to Malaysian leaders at meetings, Dr Chin notes.
Datuk Keith Li, a mainland Chinese business leader in Malaysia, shares the views of his Malaysian counterparts.
“China will definitely focus more on the Asean market since the bloc is China’s biggest trading partner amid the pandemic. Moreover, China’s current ties with the US, Europe and Australia are tense, ” says Li, president of the China Entrepreneurs’ Association in Malaysia.
He adds: “There will be more to be done when the RCEP is implemented. China is expected to help Malaysia build a high-speed railway, an essential link with other Asean countries” Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and Singapore. This will also facilitate China to enhance economic cooperation with Asean in tourism, trade, logistics and communication.”
China convened its annual
legislative session on Friday and released sweeping plans and goals,
including an over 6 percent GDP growth target for 2021 and a 6.8 percent
increase in military spending, clearly displaying its resilience and
confidence in all-round ...
Economic freedom: Xi leading other Chinese leaders at the fifth plenary session of the 19th Central Committee of the CPC in Beijing on Oct 29. China’s leaders are vowing to make their country a self-reliant “technology power” after a meeting to draft a development blueprint for the state-dominated economy over the next five years. — Xinhua via AP
WHILE the world was following the US presidential elections closely hoping for a positive change in international dynamics, they did not ignore the most important political meeting taking place in China on Oct 26-29.
The developments in China – the only country showing solid economic recovery after combating the Covid-19 epidemic in Wuhan – are too important to be eclipsed by the drama in Washington led by President Donald Trump.
The Oct 26-29 meeting gave a glimpse of the future plans of China, after Beijing withstood two major challenges: the containment from the US and a major public health crisis caused by the novel coronavirus.
The effective control of the virus has enabled China to revitalise its economy, which it contracted in the first half of the year. In the third quarter, China’s GDP posted a positive growth and is expected to see even stronger expansion this quarter.
It is against this backdrop that China was holding its most important policy meeting this year.
Over the four days, top leaders of the Communist Party of China (CPC) led by President Xi Jinping deliberated China’s 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) to chart the future development path for the world’s second largest economy.
They also endorsed a blueprint to achieve President Xi’s vision of turning China into a “great modern socialist nation” by 2035, which by then is expected to be “prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced and harmonious”.
The Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee set goals to spur China’s modernisation drive, pursue self-reliance in science and technology to support its development and modernise defense capabilities, according to a post-plenum press conference live on CCTV4.
A communique summarizing the decisions was released on Oct 29 night to the media.
More than 200 leaders and elite members of CPC met behind closed doors to identify policy priorities for keeping the economy growing in the middle of a pandemic, supply chain disruptions, toxic relations with the West and global economic downturn, according to the South China Morning Post.“This five year plan is China’s most important policy program, which sets goals and directions for the national economic and social development, ” said Professor Wang Wen, who was involved in drafting the plan.
The executive dean of Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China added that this plan is a “very comprehensive plan” as public opinion was collected on the Internet and reported to decision-making levels.
And President Xi had personally held frequent symposiums on various fields and sectors ahead of the plenary session.
“The plan takes into account the interests and demands of the whole country, various industries, regions and institutions. It is a design to start a new journey of fully building a modern socialist country after China completes the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects, ” Wang said in a post-event comment piece emailed to Sunday Star.
At the post-event press conference on Oct 30, the media were told Beijing would actively promote “technological self-reliance” to speed up China’s ambition as a “technology power.”
Self-reliance is the main theme of the five-year plan as China faces the threats of economic decoupling and de-globalisation, as well as other headwinds, the media learnt.
China had to nurture its own microchip producers and high technology in the face of US export curbs that has hurt China’s tech industry.
According to a report, Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei has lost a lot of its supply sources of high-precision chips; and if the US ban continues and Beijing does not act, Huawei may have to stop its high-end smart-phone production.
“We will take scientific and technological self-reliance as a strategic support for national development, ” Han Wenxiu, an adviser to President Xi, said at the Oct 30 news conference.
State-linked Global Times, in its editorial, said Trump’s China policies have awakened the Chinese from complacency.
It said: “If it were not for the US’ suppression, Chinese people may have always built our industries on American semiconductors.
“Over the past four years, the US’ China policy has awakened China. It has made us understand we may be stuck on key technologies and we must make up for technological shortcomings.
“It has also convinced us that the US will not accept China’s rise and will do everything to suppress China. This is a cold reality.”
The CPC plenary session has also endorsed the “dual circulation” economic strategy.
Under this new strategy, China will remain open to foreign investment and trade, while moving its pivot to build up an internal economy. The model looks at the domestic market as the country’s economic mainstay, with domestic and foreign markets complementing each other.
Although there is greater emphasis to create the domestic economy by spurring local spending, China will continue to open more sectors to foreign investors.
The message sent to foreigners is: China will not isolate itself from the global economy while developing its domestic economy to be self-reliant in all aspects.
And in fact, at the opening of Shanghai’s third import expo on Wednesday, Xi announced China wants to import more and be the market of the world. He added China’s 400 million-strong middle class will be ready consumers.
According to Han, the Oct 26-29 meeting also decided that China will continue to pursue reforms and open up as it believes in multilateralism and globalisation.
He said: “We will never waver in our national policy of opening up. China will provide countries around the world with larger markets and more opportunities.”
In the next five years, China will focus on high-quality growth and expansion of domestic markets, as well as increasing its innovation capability.
“As China is no longer a follower but a front-runner, the meeting must have considered how China can lead the global economy. The following five years will not be easy. However, as long as we grasp the law, enhance awareness of risks and opportunities... China
will witness a completely new scene of development, ” commented Wang.
As China is facing possible risks of clashes with the US and its allies that are conducting extensive military exercises in waters in South China Sea and nearby waters, military buildup is on the agenda in the next five years.
“China’s necessary military buildup is urgent. Based on the principle of effective defense, besides establishing military advantages in coastal waters, we must consolidate our strategic deterrence based on nuclear capabilities, ” explained Global Times in its editorial.
“We must make Washington realise that it is facing a China that it should be wary of trifling with, and that treating China as a friend rather than a foe much better fits US national interests, ” added Global Times.
In the four-day intense meeting, the welfare and interests of the people were not left out.
After eradicating the last of extreme poverty this year and lifting 700 million out of abject poverty in the past 40 years, the next goal for the CPC leaders is to hit its target of building a “moderately prosperous society” in 2021.
In fact, the goal to become “a moderately prosperous society” in by 2021 has been achieved, according to state media.
Acknowledging that the Covid-19 pandemic has affected many people, the plenary session discussed employment, income disparity, the quality of life and education, health issues and elderly care, the media were told on Oct 30. While the plenary session deliberated a lot on economic issues, foreign media are keen to scrutinise it from a political angle. To Japan’s Nikkei, the “2035”
figure is a magical figure that could provide indication on the leadership tenure of Xi, who became president in 2013.
“The long-running speculation that Xi is considering staying in power way past 2022 was in effect confirmed as China put in motion an ultralong 15-year vision promising new levels of prosperity by 2035, ” reported Nikkei.
But whether outsiders love CPC or not, China’s 1.4 billion Chinese have the final say.
According to a nationwide survey, about 95% of Chinese nationals polled said they support the CPC leaders and are satisfied with the manner they govern the country and overcome the Covid-19 crisis.
“History has selected the CPC to lead China and its people. The CPC, under the strong and excellent leadership of President Xi, will continue to rule China, ” declared one of four spokesmen at the Oct 30 live press conference.
He added: “The plenary session believes that under the leadership of Xi Jinping, China will be able to face risks and tackle challenges ahead and advance a socialist economy with Chinese characteristics.”
During the 13th Five-Year Plan period,
from 2016 to 2020, China has made great strides in improving the
economy, people's livelihood and other fields. China has contributed
over 30 percent to global economic growth, with GDP hitting almost 100
trillion yuan ($14.9 trillion). Over 50 million people have been
relieved from poverty, and 53.78 million new urban jobs have been
created. New standard bearers in technology emerged, including
high-speed trains, the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System and domestic
passenger aircraft C919. This rapid technological development can be
attributed to investment in research and development, which totaled 2.17
trillion yuan in 2019, accounting for 2.19 percent of GDP and up 56.3
percent from 2015.
From smart unmanned vaccination capsules and artificial meat
to the world's first complete carbon fiber supercar and the safest
electric wheeled excavator, the ongoing third China International Import
Expo (CIIE)
To adapt to the changing international and domestic
trends, China will pursue international cooperation and competition as
well as innovative development in foreign trade, one of the driving
forces of the nation's economic growth.
US diplomacy under Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has
become chaotic, with no principle or bottom line. It's a train wreck.
Pompeo's successor needs to make up for damages done to China-US
relations, US' alliance system and multilateralism.
HANGZHOU - A brain-like computer with over 100 million neurons, the first of its kind in China, has been developed by researchers in East China's Zhejiang province.
Zhejiang University and Zhejiang Lab on Tuesday jointly introduced the newly developed computer named Darwin Mouse.
This high-tech device contains 792 second-generation brain-like Darwin chips developed by Zhejiang University, said Zhu Shiqiang,
director of Zhejiang Lab.
It supports 120 million spiking neurons and nearly 100 billion synapses, which are equivalent to the number of neurons in the brain of a mouse. The average power consumption of the computer comes in at only 350-500 watts.
"Just like building blocks, we integrated the 792 brain-like computing chips into three standard server chassis to form a powerful rack-mounted brain-like computer," said Pan Gang, leader of the research team, from College of Computer Science and Technology, Zhejiang University.
Meanwhile, the team also developed an operating system specifically designed for brain-like computers, named Darwin OS, which realizes effective management and scheduling of the hardware resources and supports operations and applications of brain-like computers.
According to researchers, brain-like computing refers to the use of hardware and software to simulate the structure and operating mechanism of the brain's neural network and construct a new artificial intelligence paradigm. It is an innovative computing architecture that is regarded as one of the important ways to solve complex computing-related problems in fields, such as artificial intelligence.
Pan added that this type of brain-like computer has been able to perform a variety of intelligent tasks, such as enabling the collaboration of multiple robots in simulated flood-fighting-and-rescue operations, simulating different regions of the brain and providing faster and large-scale simulation tools for scientific research. Besides, it has also realized "mind typing" through real-time decoding of electroencephalogram (EEG) signals.
"By simulating the human brain, we will be able to understand the working principles of different parts of the brain, which will help cure certain brain diseases that otherwise cannot be diagnosed through biomedical approaches," said Pan. "In the future, brain-like computers will have broader application prospects including three major areas of artificial intelligence, brain science and brain diseases."
"Brain-like computing is expected to emerge as an important form of computing in the future," said Wu Zhaohui, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and president of Zhejiang University.
"It is the latest achievement of the brain science and artificial intelligence research project (referred to as the Double Brain Project). By emulating the structure and mechanism of the brain, this project is expected to develop a new computer architecture that will lead the future," said Wu.
A paralyzed man who could only communicate by blinking
his eyes, used a brain implant to say "Hello" through a computer,
reportedly the first in the world, which touched medical staff at the
Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Northwest
China's Shaanxi Province
