On 10 February, H.E. Qi Zhenhong, Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka, published the first article in a signed series titled "Decoding How China Became an Innovation Powerhouse: Four Key Strengths" in the English-language mainstream media Daily News. Full text is as follows:

In recent years, China has captured global attention with a series of major scientific and technological breakthroughs. Landmark achievements include the Chang’e-6 mission, which successfully retrieved samples from the far side of the Moon; the Beidou Navigation Satellite System, providing precise positioning services worldwide; the commissioning of the world’s first fourth-generation nuclear power plant; and the rapid emergence of DeepSeek. China’s ranking in the Global Innovation Index has risen sharply from 34th in 2012 to 10th in 2025, marking one of the fastest climbs worldwide. In 2025, “Chinese innovation” became a global buzzword. How has China managed to break through technological monopolies and transform itself into an innovation powerhouse? In my view, the answer lies primarily in four key strengths embedded in China’s innovation ecosystem.

1.Institutional Strength

Clear guiding principles and strategic direction. China places innovation at the forefront of its five major development philosophies and at the very center of its national development strategy. In recent years, the government has rolled out a series of top-level policy frameworks, including the Outline of the National Innovation-Driven Development Strategy and the National Medium- and Long-Term Science and Technology Development Plan (2021–2035). The outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan emphasizes seizing the historic opportunities presented by a new wave of technological revolution and industrial transformation. It calls for coordinated progress in building a strong education system, a science and technology powerhouse, and a robust talent base—enhancing the overall effectiveness of the national innovation system, strengthening independent innovation capacity, securing leadership in key technologies, and continuously fostering new quality productive forces.

An effective government guiding resource allocation. China has increasingly steered monetary policy tools toward supporting technological innovation. The central bank expanded relending for science, technology and industrial upgrading to RMB 800 billion, lowering the interest rate to 1.5%. In 2024, China’s total R&D expenditure exceeded RMB 3.6 trillion, ranking second in the world, while its R&D intensity reached 2.68%, surpassing the EU average. China is establishing three major international innovation hubs—Beijing, Shanghai, and the Guangdong–Hong Kong–Macao Greater Bay Area, while accelerating the development of regional innovation centers such as Chengdu–Chongqing, Wuhan and Xi’an. Greater regional coordination is being encouraged, enabling localities to leverage their distinctive strengths and build technological advantages. Beijing continues to strengthen its capacity for original innovation, while Shanghai has rapidly enhanced its innovation capacity in integrated circuits, biomedicine, and artificial intelligence.

2.Market Strength

Enterprises as the main drivers of innovation. By 2024, China had more than 500,000 high-tech enterprises, an 83% increase since 2020. The number of “specialized, refined, distinctive and innovative” SMEs exceeded 140,000, including 17,600 nationally recognized “little giant” firms. Corporate R&D spending accounted for over 77% of China’s total R&D expenditure in 2024. Furthermore, 524 mainland Chinese companies ranked among the world’s top 2,000 industrial R&D investors, representing more than one quarter of the total. In national key R&D programs, enterprises lead or participate in nearly 80% of projects.

A super-large market creating vast space for innovation. With a population of over 1.4 billion, including more than 400 million middle-income consumers, China offers a vast user base for cutting-edge technologies. Technological iteration and growing demand reinforce each other, generating abundant real-world application scenarios. The low-altitude economy is gaining momentum, with flying cars beginning pilot operations in Shenzhen. Drones are being increasingly deployed in agriculture, where aerial pesticide spraying has become widespread. "AI+" is deeply empowering a wide range of industries. For example, the smart terminal at Tianjin Port has achieved fully automated and zero-carbon operations. Autonomous driving is rapidly transitioning from experimental trials to large-scale deployment, reshaping the mobility ecosystem. Meanwhile, humanoid robots are being introduced into industrial scenarios such as automobile manufacturing, logistics and power inspection.

Financial markets supporting technological innovation. China’s financial system provides robust support for innovation. Banks have expanded credit to technology firms, easing their financing constraints. By the end of the third quarter of 2025, loans had been extended to 275,400 technology-based SMEs, with outstanding balances totaling RMB 3.56 trillion and a loan coverage rate of 50.3%. More than 260,000 high-tech enterprises obtained loans, with a coverage rate of 57.6% and outstanding balances of RMB 18.84 trillion—a year-on-year increase of 6.9%. Capital markets further complement bank financing by offering diversified funding channels for technology companies.

3.Talent Strength

China has maintained public fiscal spending on education at over 4% of GDP for 13 consecutive years. Enrollment in compulsory education exceeds 160 million students, forming the world’s largest basic education system. By 2024, the total number of people receiving higher education in China reached 250 million, with a gross enrollment rate exceeding 60%. Each year, more than 5 million STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) graduates enter the workforce. Nearly all engineers and researchers at DeepSeek are graduates of leading domestic universities such as Tsinghua University, Peking University, and Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications. China also operates the world’s largest vocational education system, with around 35 million students enrolled in vocational institutions, which has cultivated a large number of highly skilled technicians and master craftsmen. In modern manufacturing and strategic emerging industries, over 70% of newly added workers are graduates of vocational schools.

4.Openness and Global Engagement Strength

Integration into the global innovation network. China is dedicated to fostering a mutually beneficial global network for science and technology cooperation. It has established cooperative relationships with more than 160 countries and regions, signed 119 intergovernmental science and technology cooperation agreements, joined over 200 international organizations and multilateral mechanisms, and actively engaged in nearly 60 major international scientific programs and projects. Through the Belt and Road Science, Technology and Innovation Cooperation Action Plan, China has jointly established more than 70 Belt and Road joint laboratories with nearly 50 countries and co-funded close to 4,000 joint research projects. A notable example is the China–Sri Lanka Belt and Road Joint Laboratory on Green Pest Control Technologies for Tea, co-established by Guizhou University and the University of Peradeniya, which provides strong technological support for sustainable tea cultivation in Sri Lanka.

Commitment to open scientific cooperation. China’s space station has attracted participation from 23 institutions across 17 countries, including Switzerland, Germany and Italy. The China National Space Administration has approved international applications from seven institutions in six countries to borrow lunar samples. The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope(FAST) known as the “China Sky Eye,” is open to observation proposals from scientists around the world. DeepSeek has challenged the technological monopolies of a few countries through an open-source approach, enabling developers around the world to use and improve its technology. China has also proposed establishing a World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization and launched the International Cooperation Initiative on “AI+”, advocating for open, inclusive and people-centered AI development for the benefit of all.

China possesses vast innovation capacity and expansive vision. By leveraging scientific and technological innovation to drive the development of new productive forces, China remains firmly committed to advancing technological progress through openness and cooperation, and to promoting shared development through the widespread dissemination of innovative achievements. China will continue to put into practice the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind, sharing its experience in science and technology development with other countries and contributing Chinese solutions to the progress of humanity.