Chongqing Delegation held a plenary meeting and decided to submit the suggestion of supporting the construction of a comprehensive national science center by Sichuan and Chongqing to the fourth session of the 13th National People's Congress on March 4.
Western (Chongqing) Science City
As Chongqing Delegation stated in the suggestion, the fifth plenary session of the 19th CPC Central Committee has prioritized innovation in planning the development path for the 14th Five-Year Plan period, put forward to "uphold the core position of innovation in the country's modernization drive, and make the commitment to independent innovation in science and technology as strategic support to national development" and stressed the importance of completing national innovation system and building China into a science and technology giant at a faster pace.
A comprehensive national science center serves as a basic platform for national innovation system construction and a core force representing the country to participate in the global scientific and technological competition and cooperation. According to the planning outline for the construction of Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle, building a comprehensive national science center is a key move and a core task of Chengdu and Chongqing to speed up scientific construction and technological innovation center with national influence. It will play an important role in promoting the construction of the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle.
The suggestion pointed out that Sichuan and Chongqing have the basic advantages to establish a comprehensive science center with strong innovation entities, supportive innovation platforms, and groundbreaking innovation achievements. In recent years, thanks to the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, the positive support from allied national ministries and commissions, and the joint efforts of all sectors of society, Sichuan and Chongqing have optimized innovation environment, put in place practical measures and accelerated innovation development, thereby realizing a constant improvement in scientific and technological abilities.
In line with national strategic planning
Sichuan and Chongqing are working hard to build a comprehensive science center in line with the national strategic planning. However, to start with, Sichuan and Chongqing are not fully competent in some aspects where strong national support is badly needed.
For this, Chongqing Delegation has put forward four suggestions.
First, provide support in developing large-scale science facilities. Large-scale science facilities are a material prerequisite for building a comprehensive science center. Since 2017, Chongqing has been planning and developing large-scale facilities for science, basically preparing the way for commencing a batch of iconic projects. Chongqing Delegation suggests providing national support for Chongqing in developing large-scale science facilities. Incorporating the badly needed projects for scientific and technological development, they are relatively mature and enjoy better prospects for application into the 14th Five-Year Plan for major national science and technology infrastructure construction.
Second, provide support in developing a national laboratory or a national laboratory base. The national laboratory is a strategic scientific and technological force that reflects national will, accomplishes the national mission, and represents national strength. In recent years, Chongqing has focused on cutting-edge scientific fields, formulated strategic plans for major scientific and technological infrastructure construction, integrated national scientific and technological innovation bases, and built high-end R&D platforms. With these efforts, an innovation chain and an industrial chain characterized by upstream and downstream coordination have shaped, laying a solid foundation for cultivating national laboratories. Chongqing Delegation suggests providing national support for Chongqing to plan and advance national laboratory or national laboratory base construction in Chongqing and strengthen original and disruptive innovation ability with the positioning of a "strategically important area in the interior" in mind.
Third, provide support in building a national scientific and technological innovation base. The national scientific and technological innovation base is an important part of the national innovation system and a key platform for the comprehensive science center to conduct frontier interdisciplinary research. As the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle's construction accelerates, Sichuan-Chongqing scientific and technological cooperation has become increasingly frequent, and regional collaborative innovation has been deepening. Chongqing Delegation suggests providing national support for Sichuan and Chongqing to build a comprehensive national technological innovation center and for Chongqing to build a national key laboratory, a national technological innovation center, a national industrial innovation center, and a national manufacturing innovation center. Meanwhile, Chongqing Delegation also suggests efforts to promote Sichuan and Chongqing to build China's key hub for scientific and technological innovation, area for industrial innovation application, and demonstration area for open innovation.
Fourth, provide support in building the CAS Chongqing Science Center. Last year, Chongqing Municipal People's Government and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) signed a strategic cooperation agreement to build the CAS Chongqing Science Center in Western (Chongqing) Science City. CAS Chongqing Science Center is the core carrier for Chongqing to build scientific and technological innovation center and comprehensive science center as part of its effort to develop strategic scientific and technological forces with national influence and is also the strategic underpinning for Chongqing to advance the construction of Western (Chongqing) Science City. Chongqing Delegation suggests providing national support for Chongqing to build the CAS Chongqing Science Center at a high starting point and up to a high standard. At the same time, Chongqing Delegation also suggests giving priority to Chongqing in planning major scientific and technological infrastructure, building national scientific and technological innovation base and implementing key national scientific and technological projects, thereby realizing the integration of the science and education resources, institutional innovation and major
research outputs.
Moreover, Sichuan Delegation and Chongqing Delegation will jointly put forward the Suggestions on strengthening shipping capacity construction in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River to boost the development of Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle.