#China #Beijing #Technology Innovation #High-quality development

China's Strategy for High-Quality Development through Technological Innovation

As reported by CGTN on December 23, 2025, China is making strides in technological innovation through a strategy of coordinated regional development. This approach emphasizes collaborative growth among urban clusters, focusing on improving innovation capabilities throughout the country.

Coordinated Regional Growth

China’s major urban conglomerates, including the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area, are pivotal in this initiative. The article highlights the shift from isolated development in major cities to a more integrated and cooperative model that leverages regional strengths and capabilities.

Beijing, as a central hub, has maximized its role in fostering innovation, enhancing cooperation with Tianjin and Hebei. This collaboration has significantly boosted the innovative capacity of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area, known as Jing-Jin-Ji, which has become a model for national strategies since its inception in February 2014. As a result, 14 innovation platforms and seven national advanced manufacturing clusters have been established, contributing to a regional GDP of approximately 11.5 trillion yuan (around 1.6 trillion USD) in 2024.

The Zhongguancun Science Park in Xiongan has integrated platforms from across Beijing specializing in fields like science, technology, finance, and industrial research. This synergy provides businesses with access to high-quality innovation resources, enhancing their operational capabilities without the need to relocate.

Innovation Spread Beyond Major Cities

Technological innovation in China is no longer limited to large urban centers. Instead, regions like the Yangtze River Delta are experiencing a vibrant uptick in innovative capacity. This area, consisting of Shanghai and surrounding provinces such as Jiangsu and Zhejiang, is leveraging its rich industrial background to fuel its high-tech industry, which currently accounts for over 30% of China's total high-tech enterprises.

The National Center for Excellence in Innovation, located within the delta, has also formed strategic partnerships with over 200 domestic and international universities and research institutes, leading to the establishment of joint innovation centers with nearly 600 leading companies.

In southern China, the Greater Bay Area has seen remarkable growth in its technology innovation capacity, with nine major infrastructure projects being initiated. A total of 31 joint laboratories have been established to enhance technological innovation specifically in this region.

Commitment to High-Quality Development

President Xi Jinping has emphasized the importance of promoting high-quality regional development. He has undertaken tours of various regions, setting the agenda for how these areas can better harness their comparative advantages to achieve complementary benefits and maintain balanced development.

As part of its deeper implementation of coordinated regional development strategies, regions like Jing-Jin-Ji, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Greater Bay Area are driving a national innovation agenda, contributing significantly to the country's economic performance.

For instance, the Greater Bay Area occupies less than 0.6% of China's total land area but produces a remarkable 9% of the nation's economic output. This region is among the most economically vibrant in the country, focusing on emerging sectors like low-altitude economy and biomanufacturing, with plans to create additional industrial clusters worth 100 billion yuan (approximately 14.2 billion USD).

On a recent inspection tour in Guangdong, Xi urged the province to prioritize new-quality manufacturing and integrate technological and industrial innovations more deeply. He advocates for building a modern industrial system that possesses international competitiveness while continuously progressing towards high development standards.

At an annual economic work conference, China committed to developing international innovation centers in Beijing (Jing-Jin-Ji), Shanghai (Yangtze River Delta), and the Greater Bay Area. This reflects a strategic enhancement that underscores Greater regional coordination rather than isolated city-centered initiatives. Gong Chao, a researcher at the National Institute for Innovation and Development at Tongji University, noted that this shift emphasizes the growing importance of regional cooperation in China's innovation strategy.

Through these efforts, China is not only advancing its technological frontier but is also positioning itself as a leader in the global innovation landscape, setting the stage for sustainable economic growth and development across diverse regions of the nation.