Chinese President Xi Jinping set the target of China becoming a leading power in science and technology (S&T) by the middle of this century as he addressed a major S&T conference on Monday.
China should establish itself as one of the most innovative countries by 2020 and a leading innovator by 2030 before realizing the objective of becoming a world-leading S&T power by the centenary anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 2049, Xi said.
He made the remarks at an event conflating the national conference on S&T, the biennial conference of the country’s two top think tanks — the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering, and the national congress of the China Association for Science and Technology.
Xi stressed the role of S&T as a bedrock upon which “the country relies for its power, enterprises rely for victories, and people rely for a better life.”
“Great scientific and technological capacity is a must for China to be strong and for people’s lives to improve”, he said, calling for new ideas, designs, and strategies in science and tech.
Story by Xinhua.