Belt and Road Conference on science, tech exchanges to be held in Chongqing

The first Belt and Road Conference on Science and Technology Exchange will be held in Chongqing from Nov 6 to 7 and representatives from over 70 countries, regions and international organizations have confirmed their participation in the conference, organizers said on Tuesday.

The conference is jointly organized by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Engineering, the China Association for Science and Technology, the Chongqing Municipal People's Government and the Sichuan Provincial People's Government, with the National Development and Reform Commission as a supporting unit.

The conference will focus on topics such as intergovernmental scientific and technological cooperation, scientific and technological cultural exchanges, industrial innovation and development, future medicine, and big data.

As introduced by Vice Minister of Science and Technology Zhang Guangjun, China has signed government-to-government agreements on scientific and technological cooperation with more than 80 countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative.

Among them, China has supported more than 10,000 young scientists from participating countries to come to China for short-term work and exchange, training 16,000 scientific and technological management personnel from participating countries.

"China is not only an important participant in international frontier innovation but also a significant contributor to addressing global common challenges," Zhang said.

He said that so far, China has established scientific and technological cooperation relationships with over 160 countries and regions, signed 117 government-to-government agreements on scientific and technological cooperation, and has engaged in practical cooperation with various countries in areas such as climate change, clean energy and public health.

At the same time, China has joined more than 200 international organizations and multilateral mechanisms, participating in nearly 60 international large-scale scientific programs and projects, including the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor and the Square Kilometer Array radio telescope.

Zhang stated that China will further open up in science and technology, creating a favorable environment for open innovation. Pilot programs will be established for a global scientific research fund, to encourage and support foreign scientists in conducting research on global challenges, he added.