Sichuan Headway on High-quality Development

With a largepopulation， arobust economyand a strongscientific and educationalfoundation， Sichuan is an inlandprovince of strategic importancein China. Since the 18th NationalCongress of the CommunistParty of China in 2012， Sichuanhas seized its strategic positionand mission from the overallnational perspective， promotedhigh-quality development， andachieved a promising start on itsjourney to modernization.

Focus on Technological Innovation

Quantum photonic chips are acrucial component of the futurequantum internet. The successfuldevelopment of gallium nitridequantum photonic chips bythe Information and QuantumLaboratory at the University ofElectronic Science and Technologyof China in Chengdu in 2024 hasexpanded the output wavelengthrange from 25.6 nanometers to 100nanometers. China is moving closerto the quantum internet.

In recent years， Sichuanhas focused on scientific andtechnological innovation，fostering a solid foundation forthe development of new qualityproductive forces. As a provincewith strength in science andeducation， Sichuan covers all 41industrial categories and is hometo 17 national key laboratories，10 major national scientificfacilities， 137 institutions of highereducation， 369 scientific researchinstitutes， and 205 national-levelinnovation platforms. These serveas the foundation and support forthe province to carry out scientificand technological research anddevelopment.

From basic science to cuttingedgeapplied technologies， Sichuanhas been providing sustainedmomentum for advancinghigh-quality development.In Mianyang City， significantbreakthroughs have beenachieved in the research anddevelopment of BeiDou-3positioning chips for civil use.In Neijiang City， the Sichuan-Chongqing pilot R&D platformfor the next-generation electronicinformation technology industryis in operation. In LiangshanYi Autonomous Prefecture，the Deep Underground andUltra-low Radiation BackgroundFacility for Frontier PhysicsExperiments （DURF）， theworld’s deepest and largestunderground physics laboratory，has begun operation. In Chengdu，China’s artificial sun project，Huanliu-3， an experiment deviceinvolving nuclear fusion， hasopened to the global scientificcommunity.

By the end of 2023， Sichuanhad a total of 16，900 nationalhigh-tech enterprises and 21，000registered small and medium-sizedtech companies. The province willcontinue to vigorously promoteoriginal and breakthroughtechnological innovation，striving to provide a constant andstrong impetus for high-qualitydevelopment.

Industrial Distributionwith Focus on High-qualityDevelopment

On March 27， 2024， thegroundbreaking ceremony forthe first domestic 8.6-generationAMOLED production linefunded and built by BOE was heldin Chengdu. The project， focusingon manufacturing high-end touchdisplay screens， received a totalinvestment of 63 billion yuan（US$9 billion）， the largest singlemanufacturing investment inSichuan’s industrial history.

This is merely a glance at thebooming electronic informationindustry in Sichuan. Currently，the total volume of Sichuan’selectronic information industryexceeds 1.6 trillion yuan（US$228 billion）. A number ofhigh-standard national platformshave been established. Sichuanhas been approved as a pilot anddemonstration region for anadvanced manufacturing clusterof electronic information in theChengdu-Chongqing area， one ofthe first national digital economyinnovation and development pilotzones， and a national innovationand development pilot zonefor new-generation artificialintelligence. Technological andindustrial innovations are deeplyintegrated in Sichuan， acceleratingthe construction of a scientific andtechnological innovation hub withwide influence across the country.

Focused on high-qualitydevelopment， Sichuan has adopteda big-picture and forward-lookingperspective to plan future-orientedindustries. It is strengtheningexploration of cutting-edgeand breakthrough technologiesthrough multiple pathways andcross-disciplinary integration，striving to create a wave of iconicproducts and application scenariosthat will drive future development.At the same time， the provinceis enhancing and optimizing thedigital economy， acceleratingconstruction of centers topromote digital transformation，and bolstering digital technologyinnovation to empower theupgrading of the entire industrialchain.

Sichuan will accelerate thein-depth transformation andupgrading of six major leadingindustries including electronicinformation， equipmentmanufacturing， advancedmaterials， energy and chemicals，food and textiles， and medicineand health. With artificialintelligence designated as a toppriority， Sichuan will promotedevelopment and applicationof the entire green hydrogenindustry chain and cultivatestrategic emerging industriessuch as biotechnology， satellitenetworks， intelligent connectednew energy vehicles， unmannedaerial vehicles， and industrialinternet. Furthermore， theprovince will vigorously developthe low-altitude economy andcommercial spaceflight. Giventhe large scale of its traditionalindustries， Sichuan will alsoboost the intelligent and digitaltransformation of these industries.

Safeguarding the Granaryon the Land of Abundance

As a major agriculturalprovince in China， Sichuan isknown as the “granary on theland of abundance.” It is the onlywestern province listed amongthe 13 major grain-producingprovinces in China. In 2023，Sichuan’s grain output reachednearly 36 billion kilograms，hitting a new high for 26 years.The province has taken effectivemeasures to protect farmland.In 2023， the province saw anet increase of around 33，333hectares of arable land andreclaimed 2，800 hectares ofabandoned farmland， ensuringthat all available land iscultivated.

Sichuan promotes a holisticview of food security， strivingto provide more food to peopleand increase farmers’ incomes.Currently， Sichuan ranks firstin the country in productionof 15 agricultural productsincluding canola and potatoes.The province serves as astrategic base for safeguardingthe supply of important primaryagricultural products in China.Sichuan focuses on developinglocal specialties and promotesintegrated development ofprimary， secondary， and tertiaryindustries.

Sichuan boasts a forestedarea of 25.4 million hectares，which is 4.8 times the area of itscultivated land. The provincehas taken the lead in organizingthe construction of a “forestgranary，” focusing on sevenmajor fields such as woody graincrops， woody oil， and forestfarming to produce food fromforests. In primitive forests inGanzi， Aba， Liangshan， andother areas in the province，about 4，000 tons of matsutakemushrooms are producedannually. Some farmers can earnup to 100，000 yuan （US$14，260）a year collecting matsutake.Sichuan hosts a fifth of thecountry’s bamboo forests. Theprovince vigorously promotescomprehensive utilization andfull-chain development ofbamboo， making bamboo forestsboth beautiful scenery and asource of prosperity. Currently，Sichuan is striving to become anational demonstration provincefor forest development， aimingto achieve a harmonious balancebetween ecological， economic，and social benefits.