Speaking at a national conference on science and technology in Beijing, Hu said China will embark on a new path of innovation with Chinese characteristics, the core of which is to adhere to innovation, seek leapfrog development in key areas, make breakthroughs in key and common technologies to realise sustained and coordinated economic and social development.
Raising innovation capability should be given prominence to and the nation's competitiveness should be enhanced broadly, Hu, also General Secretary of the ruling Communist Party of China, said.
Innovation is the core of the nation's competitiveness and the strategic motif of China's future science and technological development.
The practice of the world's scientific and technological development shows that only with strong capacity of innovation, can a country win the initiative in the international competition, Hu noted.
The real core technologies cannot be purchased but can only be achieved by innovation, which should be given priority in the whole scientific and technological work, he said.
Raising the capability of innovation must focus on serving the economic and social development and try best to tackle major issues in the field, which hamper the economic and social development, Hu said. Technologies of energy resources, water resources and environmental protection should be developed as priorities.
The intellectual property rights of key techniques in equipment manufacturing and information industries should be regarded as breakthrough points in raising competitiveness, Hu said.
The goals also include developing recycling economy, making breakthroughs in pharmacy and key medical equipment, developing technologies for national defence, and building up advanced scientist groups, research institutions and enterprises, Hu said.
To encourage the innovation vitality of the entire society and turn the scientific and technological achievements into productive forces are important tasks of building up an innovation-oriented country, Hu said.
"The government would play a leading role in the scientific and technological innovation, while the basic role of market will be given a full play in the allocation of scientific and technological resources," he said.
"Companies would play a principal part in innovation, while research institutes and universities across the country would assume a key and leading role in the innovation," he said.
He said China would train world first-class scientists, especially young and middle-aged scientists, based on national key scientific research projects and international scientific cooperation projects.
An incentive mechanism should be formed to increase the efficiency of innovation and provide more chances for the young talented people.
China will introduce more overseas talented people and attract overseas Chinese graduates back to start businesses in China, Hu said.
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