Development of Science and Technology in China after 1976

As a result of the Cultural Revolution which ended in 1976 upon the death of Chairman Mao, there was a period of reform in science and technology (S&T) in China. Policymakers, academics, and analysts all agreed that systems from the 1970s weren't functioning well. There was low productivity and little return from research. The economies of Taiwan, Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore in the 1970s were all achieving relatively healthy levels of economic growth, relying heavily on S&T to fuel their economic boom.

Reform saw the emergence of new forms of S&T management. New strategic plans were put in place that did not micromanage projects. The central government provided some funding but some had to be provided for by local authorities. The emphasis was shifting away from state intervention and control. Projects were announced for tender and contracts were awarded for the best bid. Many plans were still 5-year plans in terms of key S&T projects but some long range plans lasted from 10-20 years. There were many national plans that tried to target overall national priorities in key sectors (defense, electronics and telecommunications), plus some local plans for local considerations. S&T plans were integrated with economic plans and foreign technology transfer combined with indigenous technology development. There was coordination of plans of various sectors. Some research institutes were allowed to undertake contract research for industrial enterprises. They could earn money for themselves and dependence on the central government was allowed to decrease to a certain extent. Contract terms meant additional funding and also increased competition. Work on patent law was initiated resulting in intellectual property rights being preserved.

In March 1985, the CCP decided that technology was going to be treated as a commodity and the sources of research funding were to diversify. It became something that could be sold or bought in the market place. This provided an avenue for research institutes, academics, or universities to earn extra money. CCP also encouraged the merger of research institutes and enterprises so that the research could be applicable for the market place and this increased the mobility of talented researchers.

All of this enhanced the market forces in the Chinese economy with regards to S&T. Technology markets were developed at that time and it became legal to sell research results and technical services. Development was promoted both within large state-owned and private enterprises. They were required to do their own research which meant the development of R & D labs within these large technical enterprises with support and improvement of technology from foreign and domestic sources. There was a need to improve product design and quality in order to be competitive internationally. This resulted in the implementation of quality assurance programs, a global standard which allows products to be internationally competitive.

Scientific ideas could be scaled up, applied and created by an enterprise ready to sell that technology in the marketplace. There was also feedback from production engineers. However, some researchers complained that if their ideas could not be implemented practically, they were considered to be useless. There was competition for salary and housing and researchers were confined to one particular unit within the research institute.

Enterprises were established specifically in high-tech sectors like computing software. The motivation for these new enterprises was that they could commercialize or sell the technologies that they developed in the research institutes. With the emergence of high-tech entrepreneurship, there were spin-off enterprises from research institutes selling high-tech products. New firms often filled the demand for products and services which state-owned enterprises did not supply. Many of the state-owned enterprises were very large and engaged in traditional businesses whereas these new firms engaged in the cutting edge of technology for that period of time.

There was a new cadre of political leaders that were drawn from scientists and engineers so these politicians knew science and S&T was raised up in the level of perceived importance to society. Many scientists became advisers re on population policy, on the Three Gorges Dam, of other major technological projects and this was an important role for scientists and engineers. Some even became dissident.

Conditions of life improved for scientists. There was better mobility and there was more freedom in terms of research management but there was still an uncertainty about technological innovation. It's relatively expensive, time consuming and the outcomes are not known in advance. Many enterprises where not accustomed to projects with success not determined in advance. Whether a new product will be successful and profitable in a market was something that only could be judged when that new product or technology was actually created and put into the market place. Also, some researchers and users lacked experience in evaluating research results.

During this reform period, new national resource programs were introduced.
from Coursera course, Science and Technology and Society in China. Week 2. by Naubahar Sharif, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology