WIPO China: ADG Marco Aleman at 2024 ZGC Forum Series Report (IV)

April 29, 2024

Beijing, April 26 - The Global Science and Technology Cluster Innovation Forum, one of the important parts of the 2024 ZGC Forum, was held in Beijing. Mr. Marco Alemán, Assistant Director General of WIPO, Ms. Lin Xin, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and Technology, and Mr. Yu Yingjie, Party Secretary of Education Commission of Beijing Municipal Committee of CPC, attended and addressed the event.

Alemán pointed out that innovation is the fuel that powers economic growth around the world. Innovation is not evenly distributed; it predominantly occurs in urban areas where people live and work in close proximity to one another. Although modern information and communication technologies have diminished the physical distance barrier, ideas still flow more freely when individuals meet in person.

Alemán emphasized that governments worldwide aim to create a policy environment that fosters innovation. To achieve this, an understanding of local innovation ecosystems is essential. For this reason, measuring innovation performance across the world needs to go beyond national economies as the unit of analysis. WIPO's Global Innovation Index has included a ranking of the world's top-100 Science and Technology Clusters since 2017, identifying the world’s most vibrant clusters of science and technology (S&T) activity. Alemán hopes that policymakers find this work useful, recognizing that the successful cultivation of innovation clusters necessitates a multifaceted approach to policies. He also praised the rapid development of China's S&T clusters.

Lin Xin stated in her speech that S&T clusters are the gathering place of innovation elements, the leader of scientific and technological innovation, the vane of emerging industries. Currently, scientific and technological innovation shows two major characteristics: interdisciplinary and open cooperation. The Chinese government attaches great importance to technological innovation and actively promotes the development of S&T clusters. She also expressed gratitude to WIPO for its long-standing attention and support for China's innovation.

Yu Yingjie pointed out that S&T clusters have become an important driving force leading to sustained global economic growth. Beijing is prioritizing Zhongguancun as the focal point for constructing world-leading technology parks. Additionally, it is utilizing areas like Future Science City and Huairou Science City to establish major platforms for innovation. Looking ahead, Beijing will continue to uphold the concept of collaborative innovation, foster a favorable innovation ecosystem with a global perspective.

Carsten Fink, Chief Economist of WIPO, provided a detailed interpretation of the global top 100 S&T clusters and the mechanisms for measuring innovation. The top 100 S&T clusters are concentrated in ten countries, with China hosting 24 as the country boasting the greatest number of clusters. Fink analyzed and compared the PCT applications and scientific publications of the top Chines clusters: Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou, Beijing, and Shanghai-Suzhou, discussing their advantageous technology fields, offering valuable insights to the audience.

Xue Lan, Dean of Schwarzman College at Tsinghua University, introduced the international S&T innovation center assessment co-published by Tsinghua University and Springer Nature. He discussed the concept of the international science and technology innovation evaluation system, metropolitan rankings, and regions with highly cited scientific papers, providing strategies for enhancing the construction of global science and technology innovation centers.

This parallel forum, hosted by WIPO, the Ministry of Science and Technology, and the Beijing Municipal People's Government, is one of the important events of the 2024 ZGC Forum. With the theme of "Gathering Technological Forces, Leading Urban Development", the parallel forum focused on cutting-edge topics of scientific and technological innovation and jointly planned the future path for the development of scientific and technological clusters. It attracted more than one hundred representatives from international organizations and government departments, as well as well-known experts from home and abroad.

Bilateral Meeting with CNIPA

Alemán and Carsten Fink visited the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) and had in-depth exchanges with Deputy Commissioner Lu Pengqi on the IP commercialization, IP financing, the construction of Technology and Innovation Support Centers (TISCs), and global trends of IP filing.

During his visit in Beijing, Alemán also paid some cultural visits as invited.