President calls for sci-tech powerhouse

President Xi Jinping encouraged scientific and technological workers on Friday to strive to make headway in key and core technologies and build China into a global power in science and technology.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remark in replying to a letter that 25 representatives of the sector's workers wrote to him recently.

The letter came ahead of China's fourth annual National Science and Technology Workers' Day on Saturday. Xi included his greetings to scitech workers across the country in the letter. The State Council, China's Cabinet, created the day in 2016 to honor the sector's workers.

Xi commended the nation's vast number of sci-tech workers, who use their innovative thinking and practices to serve the country, saying their dedication shows their patriotic spirit.

Innovation is the primary driving force for development, and science and technology are powerful tools to overcome difficulties, Xi said.

He mentioned the role of sci-tech workers in fighting the COVID-19 outbreak and said they have risen to the challenge and worked day and night on clinical treatments and vaccine research and development, material support and big data applications as well as providing technological support against the epidemic.

Xi said he hopes sci-tech workers across the country strive to resolve problems with key and core technologies, promote in-depth integration of applications, education and scientific research and make new and greater contributions to building China into a global power in science and technology.

The representatives of the sci-tech workers, including agronomist Yuan Longping, respiratory specialist Zhong Nanshan and space expert Ye Peijian, wrote to Xi to express their determination to make contributions in the new era of innovation and entrepreneurship.