Beijing - On March 6, the Chongqing delegation for the second session of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC) suggested accelerating the development of new quality productive forces and solidly promoting high-quality development during the ongoing  2024 Two Sessions.

Technological innovation key to new quality productive forces

In 2023, Chongqing's gross industrial output value reached 2.68 trillion yuan, according to Lan Qinghua, an NPC deputy and Secretary of the Party Group and Director of the Chongqing Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology.

Lan Qinghua is an NPC deputy, and Secretary of the Party Group and Director of the Chongqing Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology. (Photo/cqnews.net)

Lan stressed that technological innovation is crucial for developing new quality productive forces. He proposed initiatives including building an industrial innovation platform, improving the industrial innovation ecosystem, and boosting local production capabilities.

Lan said the city's manufacturing advantages in scale, system, and key sectors would enhance traditional industries. Priority would be given to high-end, intelligent, and green-oriented sectors such as electronics, automobiles, and equipment. The focus is on product innovation, quality improvement, and brand cultivation to drive manufacturing industry upgrades.

Focusing on developing emerging industries like integrated circuits, intelligent connected NEVs, and new materials, this includes speeding up innovation in key technologies and broadening application scenarios.

Lan emphasized Chongqing's dedication to digital transformation, particularly its leadership in the systemic overhaul of the manufacturing sector and its drive for new industrialization through AI. This is pivotal for establishing Chongqing as an inland economic hub.

Prioritizing 'quality excellence' in the industry

Xu Hongbin, an NPC deputy and Secretary of the Chongqing Nan'an District Committee and Secretary of the Party Working Committee of Chongqing Economic and Technological Development Zone (concurrently),  stresses the importance of market entities, technological advancement, and industrial parks in propelling high-quality development and fostering growth in the Chengdu-Chongqing region.

Xu Hongbin is an NPC deputy and Secretary of the Chongqing Nan'an District Committee and Secretary of the Party Working Committee of Chongqing Economic and Technological Development Zone (concurrently). (Photo/cqnews.net)

For instance, bolstering Sichuan-Chongqing collaborative innovation and focusing on cutting-edge technologies such as aerospace, AI, new energy, and brain science can synergize basic research and major projects, jointly driving breakthroughs in key technologies.

Xu stressed that industry serves as the carrier of new quality productive forces, prioritizing "quality excellence."

Specifically, Nan'an District and Chongqing Economic and Technological Development Zone focus on their "33618" modern manufacturing cluster system to advance towards high-end, intelligent, and green development.

They aim to bolster enterprise roles, actively upgrade traditional industries, solidify and enhance dominant industries' competitiveness, and emphasize emerging and future industries as the catalysts for developing new quality productive forces.

Integrated innovation for accelerating new quality productive forces

Du Weidong, an NPC deputy and Party Secretary and Chairman of Chongqing Xiyong Micro-Electronics Industrial Park Development Co., Ltd., said that Xiyong Micro-Electronics Industrial Park will accelerate the formation of new quality productive forces through integrated innovation.

Du Weidong is an NPC deputy and Party Secretary, and Chairman of Chongqing Xiyong Micro-Electronics Industrial Park Development Co., Ltd. (Photo/cqnews.net)

In the last 18 years, Xiyong Micro-Electronics Industrial Park has propelled Chongqing's electronic information industry forward, accounting for a third of the global laptop supply, nearly 10 percent of the city's industrial output, and over 40 percent of its import-export value.

Du suggested that the park speed up the cultivation of new drivers by leveraging its role in connecting the global industrial chain. To develop high technology and achieve industrialization, the park swiftly establishes innovation platforms, enhances innovation entity and talent cultivation, fosters industry innovation integration, and strives for breakthroughs in platform construction, entity cultivation, talent acquisition, and conversion promotion.

Xiyong Micro-Electronics Industrial Park will concentrate on the computer, communication, and automotive electronics industries, specifically focusing on developing power semiconductors to become China's premier power semiconductor industrial base. Leveraging the opportunities presented by intelligent connected NEVs, the park will foster integration and innovation between the automotive and electronics sectors, thus nurturing the automotive electronics industry.

Speed up applying sci-tech innovations to industries

Shi Haofei, an NPC deputy and researcher at the Chongqing Institute of Green and Intelligent Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, stated that promptly applying scientific and technological innovations to specific industries and industrial chains is essential for transforming them into new quality productive forces.

Shi Haofei is an NPC deputy and researcher at the Chongqing Institute of Green and Intelligent Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. (Photo/cqnews.net)

In recent years, Shi and his team have focused on researching new materials, particularly on high-quality preparation and application of graphene.

Shi suggested boosting support for basic research in top science and technology firms and incentivizing them to invest more in such research through policy measures.

He also suggested encouraging top science and technology firms to partner with universities and research institutions, sharing cutting-edge innovations. This collaborative model accelerates the application of technological innovations to industries, fostering new quality productive forces.