General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that we should "integrate scientific and technological innovation resources, lead the development of strategic emerging industries and future industries, and accelerate the formation of new quality productive forces." Entering 2024, all localities and departments are accelerating technological breakthroughs to create "new" and industrial upgrading to enhance "quality," jointly shaping new quality productive forces and providing new momentum for high-quality economic development.

Not long ago, after more than three months of research and assessment, Heilongjiang formulated an "Action Plan for Accelerating the Formation of New Quality Productive Forces in Heilongjiang Province." In this thirty-page plan, the reporter noted that the 24 key development industries proposed this year are classified in greater detail than before; for example, "high-end equipment manufacturing" is divided into five sub-sectors such as "industrial mother machines" and "marine engineering equipment."

Li Wenhua, Deputy Director of the Heilongjiang Provincial Department of Science and Technology: The purpose is to make our work more focused and targeted. In 2024, we will implement the General Secretary's requirements and accelerate the formation of new quality productive forces through these measures.

In September 2023, during an inspection tour in Heilongjiang, General Secretary Xi Jinping first proposed "new quality productive forces." He pointed out: "We should actively cultivate strategic emerging industries such as new energy, new materials, advanced manufacturing, and electronic information, actively cultivate future industries, accelerate the formation of new quality productive forces, and enhance new momentum for development." At the Central Economic Work Conference held at the end of 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized once again: "We should use scientific and technological innovation to drive industrial innovation, especially using disruptive technologies and frontier technologies to spawn new industries, new models, and new momentum, and develop new quality productive forces."

Zhang Zhanbin, Director of the China Modernization Research Center at the Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC (National Academy of Governance): General Secretary Xi Jinping's proposal and explanation of the concept of new quality productive forces point out the direction for further emancipating and developing productive forces and for reforming and improving production relations. This also means that in the process of advancing Chinese modernization, the Party Central Committee will make greater efforts to lead the comprehensive revitalization of industry through scientific and technological innovation and to gain the initiative in development.

In developing new quality productive forces, scientific and technological innovation is the core driving force. At present, China is deeply implementing the innovation-driven development strategy and has made major progress in fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, space technology, and synthetic biology. In 2023, the number of China's top 100 global science and technology innovation clusters ranked first in the world for the first time, making China the first country in the world with more than 4 million valid domestic invention patents, while its full-time equivalent of R&D personnel ranks first in the world.

Cai Jiming, Director of the Center for Political Economy at Tsinghua University: As scientific and technological innovation continues to empower the real economy, on the whole, in terms of innovation capacity, industrial system, and market scale, China has initially formed the foundation and advantages for comprehensively advancing the development of new quality productive forces.

Entering 2024, all localities have placed accelerating the cultivation of new industries and the development of new quality productive forces in an important position when deploying this year's work. Shandong proposed implementing 100 major scientific and technological innovation projects and newly cultivating about 10 provincial-level emerging industrial clusters; Guizhou emphasized seizing the "outlet" of artificial intelligence to strengthen the digital economy and deeply implement six major scientific and technological strategic actions; Anhui proposed building three major science and technology innovation highlands in quantum information, fusion energy, and deep space exploration, and accelerating the construction of emerging industrial clusters such as new energy storage.

This year, national departments will also introduce measures to smooth the virtuous cycle of education, science and technology, and talent, accelerate the improvement of the new nationwide system, focus on removing the bottlenecks and blockages that constrain the development of new quality productive forces, and allow various advanced and high-quality production factors to flow smoothly and be allocated efficiently toward the development of new quality productive forces, so that the Chinese economy can move forward steadily while accelerating the cultivation of new quality productive forces.