Paving the way for Chinese modernization through scientific and technological innovation

The 59th and 60th satellites of the BeiDou system are launched at 9:14 a.m. (Beijing time) by a Long March-3B carrier rocket and the Yuanzheng-1 (Expedition-1) upper stage attached to the carrier rocket since the satellite was launched Xichang. Central, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Sept. 19, 2024. (Photo by Yang Xi/Xinhua)

The launch of the last two satellites of the BeiDou-3 (BDS-3) navigation satellite system in September marked the completion of China's independently developed satellite navigation system, for which President Xi Jinping provided support. continued support.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, has closely followed the development of the BDS-3 program.

He visited the satellite launch site, cared and encouraged the scientists and technicians of the BDS-3 program, officially announced the commissioning of the program, sent a congratulatory letter to an international summit on the BeiDou's app and mentioned it as a highlight of China's achievements in his New Year messages.

He called for wider application of the BeiDou system to make new and greater contributions to China's economic and social development, as well as the building of a human community with a shared future.

Under the new system of concentrating efforts and resources nationwide on key enterprises, science and technology workers have overcome a multitude of technological obstacles, successfully integrating BeiDou into industrial applications and life daily.

BeiDou has become a standard configuration for consumer products such as smartphones and wearable devices. In the first half of 2024, more than 98% of the 139 million units of smartphones shipped by China supported the BeiDou positioning system.

BeiDou's growth reflects the modernization dynamic supported by the modernization of science and technology, and shows how the Chinese leader values ​​scientific and technological innovation and its fruits to support the economy and facilitate high-level development. quality.

At this year's meeting with the country's science and technology workers in June, Xi said China's modernization should be supported by science and technology modernization, and achieving high-quality development relies on new driving forces cultivated by scientific and technological innovation.

What he is calling for is happening. China has risen to 11th place in the ranking of the world's most innovative economies, representing one of the fastest rises in the last decade, according to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

The country is also home to 26 of the world's 100 largest science and technology innovation hubs, retaining its global leadership position for two consecutive years, the WIPO Global Innovation Index 2024 confirmed.

Xi emphasized the deep integration of technological and industrial innovation by strengthening the leading position of enterprises in technological innovation.

The development of new energy vehicles is a good example. In 2014, during an inspection visit to SAIC Motor, a major Chinese automaker, Xi called for research and development of products meeting various needs and stressed the importance of new energy vehicles in the development of the Chinese automobile industry.

Over the next decade, the president became a big fan of electric cars, visiting automakers, touring laboratories, and showing great interest in testing new models developed in-house. He encouraged automakers to focus on product quality and cultivate market competitiveness.

Today, new energy vehicles have become a strong point of China's technology-intensive industry. Their penetration rate, a guarantee of popularity, climbed to 53.9% in the domestic market in August, which means that their sales volume has exceeded that of traditional vehicles equipped with internal combustion engines.

New energy vehicles are also gaining popularity in Southeast Asian, South American and European markets. In the first eight months of 2024, China exported 818,000 new energy vehicles, a year-on-year increase of 12.6%.

In addition to boosting economic growth through new energy industries, Xi also attaches great importance to the role of these industries in green development and promotes the sharing of green technologies, because harmonious coexistence between man and nature is the one of the key characteristics of China's modernization. .

He has repeatedly expressed China's commitment to readjusting the industrial structure and energy mix, vigorously developing renewable energy, and making faster progress in the planning and development of large wind and photovoltaic bases.

Over the past decade, China's annual installation of renewable energy generation capacity has accounted for more than 40% of the global total, and will exceed 50% in 2023.

China's rapid progress in the development of renewable energy technologies and their massive applications has also significantly contributed to a reduction of more than 60% in wind power costs and more than 80% in electricity costs. photovoltaic energy on a global scale. This has played a central role in global efforts to reduce carbon emissions and promote transit to a greener economy.

At the same time, its renewable energy technology continues to make breakthroughs, providing impetus for the future development of the industry. According to a study published in Nature at the end of September, Chinese chemists Yuan Mingjian of Nankai University cooperated with a Canadian scientist to prepare perovskite solar cell devices with high energy conversion efficiency and high operational stability, marking a major step forward in the new generation. photovoltaic technology.

At a recent symposium on ecological protection and high-quality development in the Yellow River Basin, Xi mentioned that many African countries are discussing cooperation with China in wind and photovoltaic energy.

“Green and low-carbon cooperation has a promising future,” he said.