Innovation, Research and Development - The Keys to Achieving the MDGs in China
By Chen Jin
Meeting the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is critical in order for China to achieve sustained economic growth and improve the quality of life of its people. The Government has contributed to social progress through gradual institutional reforms, groundbreaking scientific advancements and technological innovation.
Research and development (R&D), as well as innovation, have played a fundamental role in China’s progress in science and technology (S&T) and in social development, as reflected in its 15-Year Medium to Long-term Science and Technology Plan (2006-2020). Key strategic measures include: the National High-tech R&D Programme, with 863 projects; the National Programme on Key Basic Research, with 973 projects; the National Key Technologies Programme; R&D Infrastructure and Facilities Development; the National Nanotech and Biotech projects; and 12 science and technology mega-projects. As a result, China has become a potential S&T superpower in the world, whose R&D expenditure in 2006 was 1.42 per cent of its gross domestic product and is expected to reach 2.5 per cent by 2020. Indexed science papers and patents from China will continue to increase.
China has realized the importance of innovation, the commercialization of research and development, and the links between R&D supply and economic demand. As management expert Gary Hamel has said, “there are no strategies for creating wealth in the long term that are not driven by innovation”. The idea of economist Joseph Schumpeter is also widely accepted by the Government of China and Chinese enterprises. According to its 15-Year Medium to Long-term S&T Plan, China will actively set out to become one of the most innovative countries in the world. With a population of 1.3 billion in a vast and varied territory, and a rapidly changing development landscape, the country is challenged by sustained economic growth and social welfare. R&D and innovation, instead of cheap labour and capital, have played an important role in reaching the MDGs and have led China on the path towards sustainable development. Government efforts toward poverty reduction include both stable and effective macroeconomic measures and a strong investment in R&D financial and human resources.
A student in a factory school in Bejing, China, eating a bowl of rice. (Photo: UN Photo/ J. Isaac)
Professor Longping Yuan, Director-General of the China National Hybrid Rice Research and Development Centre in Hunan, is widely acknowledged for his discovery of the genetic basis of heterosis in rice—a phenomenon in which the progeny of two distinctly different parents grow faster, yield more and resist stress better than either parent. In the three decades following his scientific breakthrough, the planting of the crop has spread so widely that almost half of China’s rice is now cultivated using hybrid grain, with a 20-per cent higher yield over previous varieties. This translates into food for approximately 60 million more people per year in the country alone.
The professor’s pioneering research has also helped transform China, within three decades, from a nation experiencing food shortage to one with food security. His accomplishments and clear vision helped create an abundant food supply, supporting a more stable China. Besides Mr. Longping, there are hundreds of special scientific and technological specialists from Chinese universities and research institutes who bring a range of R&D results to rural and remote areas. This has resulted in a dramatic decrease in the number of the rural poor, from 250 million in 1978 to 21.48 million in 2006.* China is also ahead of its target in ensuring that all children are enrolled in primary school by 2015; the net enrolment rate is almost 100 per cent. However, in order to sustain it, advanced education technology is necessary. The Chinese have made advances in their distant education system and infrastructure via the Internet and computer-based learning. Qinghua University and Zhejiang University are both renowned life-learning institutions in China, well known for innovative research.
Efforts in reducing child mortality, achieving better maternal health and halting and reversing HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases will depend on national medical science and technology, as well as on other R&D endeavours. China’s 15-Year S&T Plan, through key national projects, has increased the role of the social development sector and raised more funds for medical care and treatment, including for HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB). Clinical research and integration of Western medicine with Chinese traditional medicine played a major role in HIV/AIDS and TB reduction. For example, Holleypharm—a pharmaceutical conglomerate that covers the development of special pharmaceutical resources (artemisia, taxus and industrial hemp) and the manufacture, marketing and distribution of active pharmaceutical ingredients and finished products—aims to become one of the best pharmaceutical companies in the world for TB treatment based on indigenous Chinese medicine.
Environmental sustainability is also a big challenge for China. Rapid economic growth, fast industrialization and urbanization, and a significant increase in personal consumption have all contributed to a heavy burden of controlling environmental loss and in utilizing the various sources of energy. Thus, China has made the development of renewable energy, as well as clean coal combustion and water treatment technologies, among others, its first priority for R&D projects in the energy and environmental sectors. In addition, it has an ongoing global partnership for S&T development and has enormous R&D and innovative projects with both developed and developing countries. The China-European Union S&T cooperation works effectively in information and communication technology, and in joint research projects on the environment and life science. In a country where fixed and mobile phones, including Internet-ready computers, are spreading rapidly, ordinary citizens have better access to advanced science and technology.
China will positively achieve the MDGs by 2015 based on its current R&D and scientific innovation efforts. But challenges still remain, as it needs to continue accelerating awareness of scientific and technological learning processes, and to have more indigenous R&D projects and effective international S&T cooperation. Science, technology and innovation are key to poverty reduction, medical care and treatment, as well as to energy-saving and environmental quality. The expenditure on the development of biotechnology should be greatly increased to meet the age of bio-economy and for people-centred development. More R&D and innovative projects in the agricultural sector are expected. China should balance R&D and innovation in the agricultural, manufacturing and service sectors.
I believe that research, development and learning will simultaneously promote innovation and the realization of the MDGs. Extensive learning efforts improve the quantity and quality of educational and social innovations. Meanwhile, interaction between government officials, the industrial sector, universities and research institutes, including non-governmental organizations, is critical for better knowledge-sharing towards achieving the MDGs in China and worldwide.
- Xinhua News Agency article, 26 May 2007, by Lifang Wang.
Biography
Chen Jin is a professor of technology and innovation management and policy at Zhejiang University. He is also Director of its Research Centre for Science, Technology and Education Policy and Managing Director of the National Institute of Innovation and Sustainable Development, Research Centre for Innovation and Development. Mr. Chen is the winner of the Young Distinguished Scientist Award, presented by the National Science Foundation of China.
