Premier presses for innovation

China will intensify innovation-driven development and entrepreneurship, Premier Li Keqiang said on Sept 15.

Ahead of National Mass Innovation Entrepreneurship Week, Li said mass entrepreneurship and innovation had effectively invigorated the market, stimulated social creativity, accelerated the transition from traditional growth drivers to new growth engines, promoted equality of opportunities and increased employment.

"Authorities should continue to implement the new development concept; press ahead with supply-side structural reforms; create a syncretic, collaborative and sharing business environment; maintain fair competition in the market; improve the system of inclusive and prudential supervision; establish a new pattern of development for all enterprises; and promote the development of digital economy and platform economy," he instructed.

"New industries, growth drivers and human resources will provide strong support for economic transformation and upgrading," he said.

It is the third year in a row that a weeklong promotion on innovation and entrepreneurship, initiated by the National Development and Reform Commission, has been held nationwide.

Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli attended the opening ceremony held at the main venue, the Changyang Campus in Shanghai's Yangpu district. Changyang Campus is an iconic group innovation space that is home to more than 200 startups.

More than 150 leading innovative projects are on display at the main venue.

Apart from Shanghai, cities including Beijing, Chengdu and Shenyang have all organized a number of exhibitions and activities showcasing their recent accomplishments in innovation and entrepreneurship.

Xi Rongqing, general manager of Changyang Campus, says choosing the site as the main venue this year reflects the results of Shanghai's upgrading in recent years.

"The local government has provided the space for startups, and related management teams have been in charge of the surrounding environment and facilities," he says. "Once you enter the campus, you can understand the theme of this year, which is enhancing upgrading and strengthening the new driving forces."

The All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce conducted a third-party evaluation of the effectiveness of policies on mass innovation and entrepreneurship from June to July.

The State Council organized a policy briefing about the evaluation.

The mass-innovation evaluation covered eight provinces and cities, 17 demonstration areas and 95 enterprises. It showed that nearly 85 percent believed entrepreneurship-and innovation-related policies have created new economic driving forces. Some 81 percent of them believed the policies helped create more jobs.

The evaluation also showed that people age 30 to 39 are the major contributors of innovation and entrepreneurship.

Pilot programs for boosting entrepreneurship and innovation in regional bases, universities and companies have helped a lot in attracting talent to industrial platforms, says Huang Rong, vice-chairman of the ACFIC.

Xinhua contributed to this story.

Contact the writers through shijing@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily Africa Weekly 09/22/2017 page29)