Shenzhen maintains edge and ramps up funding for scientific R&D
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MailTo enhance innovational capability from the very beginning would be a decisive move that could lead to an apparent advantage in the competition, Wang said, adding that the city will develop fundamental research and applied basic research.
"We have learned from experience that only by embracing key and core technologies can we take control of the initiative of innovation and development," Wang said when addressing the root technical problems.
The city government has allocated at least 30 percent of the city-level scientific development and research funds to fundamental and applied basic research since 2018, Wang said. The proportion was fixed through a local law in 2020.
An innovation center near Shenzhen Bay has become a magnet for innovators from around the world to start up their businesses. CHINA DAILY
As a result, the city's fiscal inputs in these types of research reached 2.8 billion yuan ($433.4 million) and 4.8 billion yuan in 2018 and 2019 respectively, accounting for 30 percent and 37.2 percent of the city-level funds that went to the research and development sector. In 2020, the amount increased to nearly 5 billion yuan, representing 42.7 percent of the city-level expenditure on R&D, official data show.
The total investment in R&D from all channels in Shenzhen surged from 73.2 billion yuan in 2015 to 136 billion yuan last year. The figure in 2020 accounted for 4.9 percent of its GDP, a level equal to or even better than some developed countries.
According to a government mid-to-long-term plan for 2025-35, issued on June 9, the R&D investment in Shenzhen is projected to be further raised to 200 billion yuan in 2025, accounting for 5 percent of its GDP.
"The dynamic innovation system and generous financial inputs of Shenzhen allow scientists to explore freely to their hearts' content," said Hu Xiaojun, Party secretary of SZBL.
More than 60 high-level laboratories and R&D institutes as well as more than 2,700 innovational platforms and entities have been set up in Shenzhen, according to official statistics.
