Reform, opening up lead to China's sci-tech boom

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-10-22 09:18

MOSCOW -- China's science and technology have progressed in many areas since the country adopted the policy of reform and opening up 30 years ago, a Russian China expert said in a recent interview with Xinhua.

China has made tremendous scientific-technological achievements in the past 30 years, said Yakov Berger, a China expert with the Far East Institute of the Russian Academy of Science. "It began to explore the universe and make peaceful use of atomic energy. Above all, it reached leading world levels in these fields."

The invention of transgenic rice by Chinese scientists not only meets domestic demand, but also contributes to the solution of global food shortage, he said, adding China has achieved breakthroughs in health care and renewable energy exploration as well.

Moreover, China has caught up with or even surpassed some developed countries in science and technology in terms of many indicators, Berger said, "For example, Chinese research results quoted by scientific-technological documents have increased significantly in recent years."

Meanwhile, China's investment in basic research grew from 1 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) to 1.5 percent, and the number is expected to reach 3 percent in the future, he said, noting the percentage would be even higher in some high-tech sectors.

China is faced with the shortage of intellectuals during the development of innovative economy, as is the situation in Russia. However, China is nurturing scientific brains while putting research projects into practice, said Berger.

China is striving to be an economic and political world power in the coming decades, but to achieve that goal, it has to become a scientific powerhouse first, he said.

Unlike the early stage of its reform and opening up when its vast low-cost workforce contributed a great deal to China's economic miracle, science and technology has begun to play an increasingly important role in China's economic growth, said the Russian expert.

China used to manufacture simple goods with its cheap labor, but today it has increased the technical contents of these products, he said.

Berger noted a large number of core technologies are still under the control of Western countries, and in this regard China should take advantage of technological advances to change its mode of economic growth.

The 17th national congress of the Communist Party of China in October, 2007 set the goal of building an innovative nation, indicating a new mode of development for China, he said.

The Chinese leadership has realized the country has to narrow down the gap with the West in many key areas of science and technology so as to ensure a smooth economic and social transition in this century, he added.

On cooperation between Russia and China in science and technology, Berger said the two countries have great potential in this regard and scientists of both countries have interest in bilateral cooperation.

The two sides are carrying out fruitful cooperation in such areas as aviation, energy, environmental protection, gene engineering, biological medicine and energy conservation, which will further expand the basis of cooperation, he said.

China also maintains cooperation with many other countries and such interaction facilitates the advancement of science and technology in the world, he said.