Optics Valley of China, located in Wuhan, Central China's Hubei province, has been prioritizing development of SMEs by issuing a slew of far-reaching preferential policies, and so far, it has 25 "little giant" enterprises in total. [Photo/WeChat account of Optics Valley of China] 

The official website of Department of Economy and Information Technology of Hubei Province on Aug 11 announced the list of the third batch of "little giant" enterprises approved by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, in which 37 of these enterprises come from Wuhan, and 17 out of the 37 enterprises are based in the East Lake High-tech Development Zone (also known as Optics Valley, or OVC). 

To date, the valley possesses 25 "little giant" enterprises in total. 

"Little giant" enterprises are small and medium-sized enterprises, or SMEs, that are vanguards in their own fields. They focus on market segmentation, have large market shares, possess core technologies and are highly efficient, quality-oriented and innovative. 

Back in 2018, the ministry rolled out plans to cultivate around 600 "little giant" enterprises, so as to upgrade these companies in terms of their innovative capabilities, global market expansion, management levels and intelligent transformation. 

"Little giant" is the highest and the most authoritative title that SMEs can ever earn in the national evaluation. Its term of validity spans three years and SMEs need to satisfy a series of exacting conditions to apply and qualify for it. 

For instance, enterprises selected must be committed to certain links of an industry supply chain, or develop certain products of critical importance. 

The market shares of such companies must be among the top three in their segment in China, with annual sales of over 100 million yuan ($15 million) and they need to have been posted strong profits in the last two years. They also need to have relevant patents, professional research bodies and have engaged in setting standards for their industries. 

Hubei province is currently home to 172 "little giant" enterprises, contributing 3.61 percent to the country's total. It is expected that the province will have more than 300 of its SMEs applying for the title in country's upcoming fourth batch of  assessments.