China pledges billion-dollar spending boost for science

"China has proposed to increase its overall research and development (R&D) expenditure by at least 7% per year over the next five years, which translates to billions of extra dollars each year. This typically covers government and private-industry spending on basic research, applied research and experimental development."

"Unlike many countries, including the United States, in which private companies drive R&D, China's has so far been dominated by state-owned enterprises and government laboratories. As of 2023, the Chinese government was the world's biggest spender on R&D, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). But China wants private companies to lead its R&D over the next five years."

"Although the country's latest R&D budget proposal is the same as the target set in the 14th FYP, China's spending on science and technology in absolute numbers is rising significantly, says Steven Hai, a political economist focusing on technology innovation at Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University in Suzhou, China. "Today's 7% represents an absolute annual increment far exceeding that of five years ago," he says."

China announced significant increases to its research and development budgets at the Two Sessions political meeting. The country plans to boost overall R&D expenditure by at least 7% per year through 2030 as part of its 15th five-year plan. China's R&D spending exceeded 3.9 trillion yuan last year and has grown at least 8% annually for the past five years. Additionally, the science and technology budget increased 10% to 426 billion yuan for the current year. Historically dominated by state-owned enterprises and government laboratories, China now aims to shift R&D leadership toward private companies, following the model of countries like the United States.

Read at Nature