IV. Strengthening of Capabilities of Independent Innovation

The region will improve the system, mechanism and policy environment for independent innovation, setting up an open regional innovative system in which enterprises play the leading roles, and which is guided by the market and combines industry, universities, and research academies, establish the first innovative region of the country, develop into an important innovation hub and a major base for translation of research findings of the Asian-Pacific region, and advance its international competitiveness in an all-round way.

1. Facilitate Innovation and Translation of Core Technologies

In order to meet the needs of modern industrial development, the region will concentrate on the introduction, digestion, absorption, re-innovation, and integrating innovation in the key sectors, actively promote original innovation, speed up the translation of innovative findings, and realize leapfrogging development of industrial technologies. The region will focus on the independent innovation in the critical areas such as electronics and information technologies, biology and new medicine, sophisticated manufacturing, new materials, energy conservation and new energy, environmental protection and comprehensive utilization of resources, and modern agriculture, and master a number of core and shared technologies of these industries. The region will implement the major programs for breakthroughs of the state-of-the-art technologies, conduct joint programs of scientific and technological breakthroughs in the critical sectors, carry out the specialized key projects of independent innovation concerning energy conservation, emission reduction, and renewable energy, the selection and appraisal of innovative medicine, nest generation of Internet, and a new generation of mobile communications, and support the cooperation among industry, universities and research academies and the joint efforts of a region to undertake national specialized major scientific and technological projects. The region will strengthen the construction of the science and technology parks of the universities, the incubators of scientific and technological findings, and the pilot experiment bases, construct a group of bases for industrializing innovative findings, organize the implementation of the hi-tech industrialization demonstration projects, and support the translation of national key innovative findings in the Pearl River Delta. The region will also energetically develop the science and technology intermediary service organizations engaged in technology appraisal, equity transaction, and translation of research findings, set up a platform for technology transfer, and facilitate the translation of innovative findings. The region will strive to realize that by 2012, the annual applications for invention patents reach 600 pieces per 1 million of population, and the independent innovation in certain key sectors approach or reach the globally advanced levels. And by 2020, realize the transformation from "Made in Guangdong" to "Created by Guangdong" .

2. Consolidate the Role of Enterprises as Main Players of Independent Innovation.

The region will guide the innovative factors to congregate toward enterprises, encourage them to increase their R&D input, and consolidate the role of domestic enterprises as the main players of independent innovation. With the support and encouragement from the state, the region will explore the policy measures for boosting independent innovation, and take the lead in establishing and improving a policy system for enhancing the independent innovative capabilities of enterprises. The region will improve the mechanisms for encouraging the independent innovation by enterprises, comprehensively implement the preferential policies for independent innovation such as the pre-tax deduction of R&D expenses of enterprises, and expand government purchase of innovative products. The region will support the enterprises to cooperate with universities and research academies throughout the country to establish high-level technological research institutions and talents development institutions, organize enterprises technological centers, and jointly undertake national major scientific and technological projects. The region will intensify the construction of common technological platforms and of innovation service systems of industries, and support the independent innovation of enterprises with public services. The region will cultivate a group of innovative enterprises with strong innovating capabilities and economic profitability, and, emphasis will be given to the forging of 50 national-level and 10 world leading key innovative enterprises.

3. Build Open Regional Innovation System

Through intensifying regional and international cooperation, improving regional layout of innovation, and enhancing the building of innovation capabilities, the region, will establish a regional innovation system which has the features of open and integrating, reasonable distribution, and strong support. The region will deepen the science and technology cooperation among Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao, establish zones for joint innovation, and support the joint undertaking of science and technology breakthrough programs and the joint construction of innovation platforms. According to relevant plans, the region will construct the Shenzhen-Hong Kong innovation community, strengthen the cooperation among the industries, universities and research academies of Guangzhou and Hong Kong, speed up the construction of national-level innovative cities, and create a new regional layout of innovation along the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong axis. The experiments with innovative development modes conducted by the national-level development zones in Guangzhou will be supported. The enterprises will conduct trial international cooperative innovations. They will be encouraged to establish overseas R&D institutions. The region will actively take in the transfer of R&D centers of multinationals. The operational and management mechanism of innovative platforms will be improved, an open access and sharing system for science and technology equipment and information will be established and improved, and the public service functions of innovative platforms will be consolidated. The construction of the major innovative platforms including Shenzhen National Hi-Tech Industries Innovation Center, South China New Medicine Creation Center and Guangzhou International Biological Island will be accelerated. By 2012, the region will build 100 innovation platforms with modern operational and management mechanisms, including national-level key laboratories, engineering centers, and engineering laboratories. By 2020, a rather complete and sound international innovation system will be formed in this region.

4. Deepen National-Local Collaborative Mechanism for Innovation

Relevant agencies of the central government and Guangdong Province will jointly conduct comprehensive experiments on independent innovation, actively promote the reform of the systems and mechanisms for coordinated management, examination and evaluation, and science and technology system, facilitate the efficient distribution and comprehensive integration of national and local innovative resources, and collaborate with each other to form a converging innovative force. The major science and technology projects of the cooperation among industry, universities, and research academies jointly sponsored by relevant ministries and the province will be introduced, and the action plan entitled "Comprehensive Model Enterprises for Cooperation among Industry, Universities and Research Academies" and the action plan of assigning science and technology commissioners to enterprises by ministries or the province will be implemented. The state will support the national key universities and research academies to cooperate with the Pearl River Delta to organize about 100 technological innovation alliances for the ministry-province-sponsored cooperation among industry, universities and research academies, and, in concerted efforts, to construct a group of high-level research universities, scientific research institutions, major innovation platforms, and demonstration bases for ministry-province-sponsored cooperation among industry, universities, and research academies. The state will support the location and construction of national major scientific and technological infrastructures, important science and technology organizations, and major innovation capability-building projects in the Pearl River Delta, and actively promote the strategic cooperation between the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Guangdong Province on independent innovation. The construction of the cooperative projects, including the spallation neutron source, South China Innovation Base for Deep-Sea Marine Science and Technology, CAS Guangzhou Life and Health Research Academy, South China Supercomputing Center of China, CAS Guangzhou Industrial Technologies Research Academy, and CAS Shenzhen Advanced Technologies Research Academy, will be accelerated.

5. Reinforce Environmental Construction for Independent Innovation

The construction of the supporting systems of independent innovation concerning the input, talents, and protection of intellectual properties, will be reinforced. The financial resources will be optimized and consolidated, and the financial input will be increased. The region will improve the financing environment for innovation and business undertaking, actively develop intellectual property protection, lease financing, and venture capital, explore organizing new types of financial institutions to serve independent innovation, and conduct the trial of science and technology insurance. The Region will implement the intellectual property and technological standards strategies, intensify the protection and application of intellectual properties, and support the formulation of industrial, national, and international standards. The conduction of the trials with professional capabilities assessment and certification systems for people like industrial designers will be supported. The region will innovate the mechanisms for introducing, training, evaluating, appointing, commending, encouraging, and serving talents, implement the programs for introducing and training high-end talents, make use of the talent import platforms such as "Guangzhou Convention of Overseas Chinese Scholars in Science and Technology", and build a pool of high-caliber and international talents. By 2012, the R&D expenses will account for 2.5% of the regional GDP, and the number of researchers will reach 280,000. By 2020, a new environment for independent innovation with complete elements, strong support, and an open and tolerant nature will be formed.