Sci-tech talent in Longwan strong in innovation

A bird'-eye view of Longwan district in Wenzhou, East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/peopleapp.com]

The Longwan district of Wenzhou – a port and industrial city in East China's Zhejiang province – has been fueling its economy through scientific and technological advancement and is giving full play to talent to reinforce its innovation drive.

Longwan attaches great importance to enterprise growth and puts particular emphasis on strengthening independent innovation capabilities.

The number of high-tech companies and small- and medium-sized sci-tech enterprises at the provincial level has increased from 92 and 155 in 2013 to 538 and 2,487 in 2021, respectively. Thirty-two provincial-level enterprise research institutes, 46 provincial-level enterprise R&D centers, and 277 municipal-level R&D centers were introduced over the past five years.

In 2021, the R&D expenses of industrial enterprises above designated size totaled about 3.51 billion yuan ($50.21 million), a year-on-year increase of 28.1 percent and accounting for 3.15 percent of the total operating revenue of industrial enterprises.

Large industrial carriers such as China Eye Valley offer not only a beneficial business environment but also easy access to investment and financial services.

"Talent is our primary resource, and the 'core driver' for developing a region with a strong competitive advantage is a good talent ecosystem," said a Longwan official.

The district has used multiple technique to attract skilled people and has rolled out major talent projects, including "Kunpeng Action," to increase its appeal to top-notch young overseas talent. This year, Longwan successfully recruited a full-time A-class academician and had one expert selected for the provincial "Kunpeng Action" plan, achieving a historic breakthrough. Competitions, forums, and various other events were held to help scout talents and projects with high potential.

Policy support was intensified to attract and retain talent and incentivize innovation. In 2021, Longwan gave out 889 million yuan in financial rewards and subsidies, benefiting 6,807 enterprises, including 200 million yuan in subsidies supporting high-tech enterprise certification and R&D expenses.

The sci-tech finance services were also improved by providing different kinds of subsidized loans to increase innovators' access to finance. Many sci-tech funds have been established since last year, reaching a scale of 1.7 billion yuan.