The recent meeting of the National People’s Congress (NPC) stressed the importance of science and technology development for China in 2024. Pamir assesses that increased R&D expenditures — second only to defense — and key national priorities emphasized during the NPC highlight China’s ongoing drive for self-sufficiency in areas such as semiconductors and advanced pharmaceuticals.
“New Quality Productive Forces” (NQPF) is a catchphrase promoted by the Chinese media and emphasized during the March meeting of the NPC, China’s rubber-stamp parliament. NQPF is a development model proposed by Chinese President XI Jinping in September 2023.
- The Chinese government describes NQPF as “a departure from traditional economic growth models, aligning with China’s new development philosophy that prioritizes innovation and sustainability. NQPF encompasses high technology and efficient, high-quality productivity methods.”
In this policy context, Premier LI Qiang’s work report to the NPC indicated that supporting science and technology development will remain a focus of the Chinese government in 2024. Li also provided a list of S&T areas that will receive greater government attention in 2024, including the following:
- Hydrogen power
- New materials — which typically includes semiconductors
- New pharmaceuticals
- Quantum technology
- Big data and AI application
- Biotechnology
- Commercial space service
- Low-altitude economy, such as air taxis, drones, and airships
Citing “airships” as an economic area of emphasis suggests that Beijing hopes to build on its narrative that claimed recent “spy balloon” incidents were, in fact, civilian endeavors gone astray.
Li further emphasized that China would continue its whole-of-nation approach to achieve breakthroughs in key technologies and to advance research on “disruptive and frontier technologies.”
- The government’s 2024 research and development budget indicates an increase of 6.63% relative to 2023; only the defense budget has a greater increase.
- Li also called for committing more resources to train and retain high-end talents.
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