Province boldly advances the development of new quality productive forces

Fushan Suburban Park in Fuzhou has become a popular tourist spot to visit. [Photo/Lin Shuangwei for China Daily]

As this year's two sessions of Fujian province — the annual gatherings of the Fujian People's Congress and the Fujian Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference — are underway, the province in East China is poised to go full steam ahead with its 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30).

This year marks the beginning of the 15th Five-Year Plan. It is a crucial period for Fujian to better position itself in China's modernization efforts, embarking on a new journey and writing a new chapter in the construction of a modern Fujian, Fujian Governor Zhao Long said while delivering the provincial government work report at the ongoing Fujian People's Congress on Jan 27.

In response to the proposals on Fujian's 15th Five-Year Plan, which were made at the ninth plenary session of the 11th Fujian Committee of the Communist Party of China, the ongoing two sessions will provide clear direction and lay a foundation for the province's sustainable development, observers anticipated.

During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, Fujian will focus on high-quality development, taking innovation and reform as its fundamental driving forces, to meet the growing needs of people for a better life, Zhao noted.

"Fujian aims to blaze new trails in the deep integration of technological innovation with industrial innovation, taking bold steps in advancing comprehensive reform, expanding high-level opening-up, setting an example in promoting coordinated regional development and urban-rural integration, as well as enhancing cultural influence while showcasing Fujian's renewed image through sustained efforts," he said.

According to its development plan, the province aims to lead the way in fundamentally achieving socialist modernization by 2035. To this end, it has outlined 24 major targets across five categories for the next five years, covering economic development, innovation-driven growth, residents' well-being, green and low-carbon initiatives, and security assurance, the governor revealed.

The targets include an average annual GDP increase of around 5 percent, and growth in per capita disposable income of Fujian residents in line with the province's economic progress.

As an economic powerhouse, Fujian will place greater emphasis on improving quality and efficiency, balancing development and security, as well as advancing new quality productive forces tailored to local conditions over the next five years, Zhao said.

Such ambitious goals are built on the substantial achievements that Fujian made across the board during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25).

Government data show that the province's GDP grew from 4.37 trillion yuan ($625.85 billion) in 2020 to 5.78 trillion yuan in 2024, and surpassed 6 trillion yuan in 2025, up 5 percent year-on-year.

Innovation strategy

During 2021-25, Fujian implemented an innovation-driven development strategy, promoting deep integration between technological innovation and industrial innovation.

Over the past five years, annual investment in research and development across the province grew by 10.5 percent, which spurred a 148 percent surge in high-value invention patents compared with that of the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20). Nine new members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering recognized during 2021-25 were from Fujian and 12,600 people in the province were rated as provincial high-level talent. In 2025 alone, 106 experts and specialists from Fujian joined national-level talent programs.

The innovation-friendly climate gives a strong boost to the province's efforts to create a modern industrial system. Its pillar sectors such as electronic information, advanced equipment manufacturing, modern textile and apparel, and petrochemicals keep expanding in scale. The province added two national advanced manufacturing clusters and 19 national specialized industrial clusters for small and medium-sized enterprises over the past five years.

Behind the growth was the revitalization and transformation of traditional industries and the emergence of groundbreaking new quality productive forces.

Currently, Fujian is home to 426 national-level specialized and innovative "little giant" enterprises, 65 manufacturing single champion enterprises, and more than 15,000 high-tech businesses at national level.

Battery manufacturing giant CATL exemplifies high-quality development in Fujian's new energy industry. Driven by this industry-leading enterprise, Fujian has maintained its global leadership in the shipment volumes of power batteries and energy storage batteries.

Accelerating the comprehensive integration of digitalization is a key part of its efforts to empower high-quality development. The scale of the province's digital economy grew from 2.03 trillion yuan in 2020 to 3.2 trillion yuan in 2024. The added value of the digital economy during the 2021-25 period is projected to reach 3.4 trillion yuan.

In addition, Fujian's gross marine product is consistently at the forefront of the country. The marine economy, including aquaculture, marine equipment manufacturing, offshore wind power, marine biomedicine and deep-sea development, will remain a focus area for Fujian's development during the next five years.

High-level opening-up

As a front-runner in reform and opening-up and as the core area of the Maritime Silk Road, Fujian has leveraged its strengths to promote the Belt and Road Initiative, better serving and integrating into the new development pattern.

In September 2025, the Ministry of Commerce released the sixth batch of best practice cases for free trade pilot zones, including one from the Xiamen Area of the China (Fujian)Pilot Free Trade Zone. The Fujian FTZ has introduced 111 nationally pioneering initiatives.

Fujian has forged a fruitful partnership with emerging economies. Under the framework of the BRICS Partnership on the New Industrial Revolution, or PartNIR, the BRICS PartNIR Innovation Center in Fujian has yielded impressive results, assisting the signing of 138 cooperation projects. The province's trade with Belt and Road countries and regions surpassed 5 trillion yuan over the past five years. Its exports to African and Latin American markets reported a year-on-year increase of 20 percent and 7.6 percent, respectively, in 2025.

During the first eight months of 2025, paid-in foreign investment reached $2.14 billion, up 7.9 percent year-on-year, 21.2 percentage points higher than the national average.

Multifaceted growth

Due to its geographical proximity to Taiwan, Fujian has long shared close economic and cultural bonds with the island across the Strait. It is ramping up the construction of the cross-Strait integrated development zone.

Fujian has been at the forefront of the Chinese mainland in terms of the number of newly established Taiwan-invested enterprises and the amount of paid-in investment from Taiwan. In 2025, 2,612 new Taiwan-invested businesses were established in Fujian, involving a combined $724 million in paid-in investment from the island.

Balanced development is placed high on Fujian's agenda. It focuses on county-level coordination to promote urban-rural integration, driving comprehensive improvement across more than 14,000 villages in the province. Its rural vitalization initiative features high-quality agricultural production in synergy with the environment conducive to residency and work.

With a people-centered philosophy running through its policies, Fujian advocates that its economic achievements are shared by its people. Over the past five years, nearly 80 percent of Fujian's fiscal expenditures went to the sectors that are related to residents' life quality, and the provincial government cumulatively spent 66.5 billion yuan on projects benefiting the people.

In addition, with a wealth of cultural tourism resources, Fujian gains in stature as a growing tourist destination. The total number of tourists and their expenditures in the province have both achieved average annual double-digit growth over the past five years. The added value of the cultural tourism industry has contributed over 10 percent of Fujian's GDP, "injecting strong momentum into the province's high-quality development", Wang Jiannan, deputy head of the province's publicity department, said at a recent news conference.

A woman tries out a driving simulator at an exhibition hall of Xiamen Tianma Display Technology. [Photo/China Daily]

Foreign contestants of the Chinese Bridge competition pick tea on Wuyi Mountain. [Photo/China Daily]