China’s top industry regulator unveiled a five-year plan to accelerate the integration of digital and real economies amid a broader push to lay down a policy framework for the nation’s industrial development until 2025.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said accelerating the deep integration of information technologies in all industrial chains is of great significance to promote industrial digitisation and digital industrialisation in the new era. According to the five-year plan, the ministry will adopt five special initiatives, including promoting manufacturing digital transformation and industrial internet platforms, to advance industrial upgrade.
The five-year plan put forward both quantitative and qualitative objectives. For instance, by 2025, the nation aims to grow the penetration rate of industrial internet platforms to 45% and the popularisation rate of digital research, development and design tools to 85%.
– Xie Shaofeng, Director, Information Technology, Development Department, MIIT
The ministry said the integrative development of”5G plus industrial internet” is on a fast track in China. At this time, more than 100 influential industrial internet platforms have also been built. In addition, more than 1,800 5G plus industrial internet projects are under construction in China, covering 10 important industries including mining, coal and electricity.
The intensified efforts to accelerate the development of the industrial internet will greatly improve production efficiency. Over the long term, it will boost the competitiveness of China’s manufacturing on the global stage.
The MIIT also unveiled a five-year plan to cultivate the nation’s big data industry. According to the plan, by 2025, the estimated scale of China’s big data industry will exceed 3 trillion yuan ($471 billion), up from more than 1 trillion yuan in 2020, and the average compound annual growth rate will be maintained at about 25%.
China’s big data industry has grown quickly over the past five years, with the average compound annual growth rate exceeding 30%. The next five years will be an important period to build China into a manufacturing and digital powerhouse, which thus means new and higher requirements for the development of the big data industry.
China’s data will account for 27.8% of the world’s total, ranking it first worldwide. In the era of the industrial digital economy, a large quantity of industrial data will be connected to the internet, which will further drive the development of the big data industry.
Moreover, China will accelerate the construction of a digital government to improve administrative services. Accordingly, the country should create a national digital government network to improve regional and interagency information sharing and ensure its digital public services cover more sectors and become more accessible.
As reported by OpenGov Asia, China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) has provided continuous support to release the potential of digital innovation and foster new drivers of growth. CAST urged to enhance digital literacy of the general public to achieve inclusive development goals beneficial to all. CAST called on efforts to deepen international cooperation and build a global network on digital governance.
The nation is already a leader in the 4th generation of the industrial revolution. Digital transformation is of great importance for the survival and development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and special assistance will be provided for SMEs to enhance their intelligent manufacturing capacity. Experts from China and abroad discuss the endless frontier of digital technology and inclusive development as a solution to the digital divide.
China needs to be built into a highland for global digital technologies and a thriving digital economy. Only by filling the digital divide can people eliminate information asymmetry and obtain the best results. China must Take sci-tech measures to promote high-quality development of financial industries.