Co-sponsored by the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) and the People's Government of Hunan Province, the 24th Annual Meeting of CAST opened in Changsha, Central China’s Hunan province on June 26, 2022.

The theme of this year’s annual meeting was “innovation-led self-reliance and self-strengthening, a new engine for the rise of the central region”.

Wan Gang, vice chairman of the National Committee of the CPPCC and president of CAST, addresses the opening ceremony of the 24th Annual Meeting of CAST. [Photo/cast.org.cn]

Wan Gang, vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and president of CAST, addressed the opening ceremony.

Zhang Qingwei, secretary of the Hunan provincial Party committee and chairman of the Standing Committee of the Hunan Provincial People's Congress, delivered a welcome speech.

Mao Weiming, deputy secretary of the Hunan Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and governor of Hunan province, and Li Weiwei, chairman of the CPPCC Hunan Provincial Committee, attended the opening ceremony.

The opening ceremony was presided over by Zhang Yuzhuo, secretary of the leading Party members group, vice president in charge of daily work, chief executive secretary of the Secretariat of CAST, and academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE).

Wan Gang said in his address that CAST and its local and grass-roots organizations must guide the broad masses of Chinese sci-tech professionals to make solid contributions to achieve innovation-led sci-tech self-reliance and self-strengthening with an open and cooperative attitude.

Wan added that CAST and its local and grass-roots organizations must carry forward the spirit of scientists to guide Chinese sci-tech professionals to cultivate a deep concern for the country and the people, and strengthen their confidence in pursuit of excellence in innovation.

Wan urged Chinese sci-tech professionals to tell heart-touching stories in their practice of making sci-tech innovation and enhancing scientific literacy of all Chinese citizens.

Wan promised to create a good ecosystem of collaborative innovation, and make full use of CAST’s organizational advantages as an open hub and a service-providing platform to gather innovative elements from industrial clusters, alliances of scientific societies and collaborative communities to optimize overall layout of the nation’s innovation systems.

Wan stressed to strengthen high-level cooperation and open sharing of international resources, and eliminate barriers to conduct more exchanges and cooperation to maximize utilization efficiency of global innovation resources to build a community with a shared future for mankind.

While noting Hunan’s efforts in serving national strategies and people’s well-being with sci-tech innovation in recent years, Wan hoped that Hunan would play a greater role in supporting high-quality development and this year’s annual meeting would pedal it as an engine to inject momentum into the rise of Central China.

On behalf of the Hunan provincial Party committee and the Hunan government, Zhang Qingwei congratulated the convening of the 24th annual meeting, extended his welcome to all guests both at home and abroad, and thanked CAST and all friends for their long term concern and support to Hunan.

Zhang briefed the attendees about Hunan’s rich and deep-rooted scientific and educational resources in boosting innovative development.

Zhang added that in recent years, Hunan had thoroughly implemented important instructions on sci-tech innovation to fulfill its new missions of becoming a highland of advanced manufacturing industry, sci-tech innovation with core competiveness and inland pilot province of reform and opening-up to promote high-quality development pattern and boost the rise of Central China and the development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt.

Zhang put an emphasis on Hunan’s efforts in developing mega science infrastructures, meeting industrial needs, strengthening independent innovation and attracting talents across the globe. 

Zhang stressed that Hunan would support young sci-tech talents to take the lead to implement the "seven major plans" including tackling key core technologies, fulfilling basic research targets, and increasing the quantity and quality of innovation elements to build Hunan a province with innovative strength in science and technology.

Zhang urged to deepen cooperation with CAST and sci-tech and industrial circles both at home and abroad, and link intellectual resources nationwide to improve Hunan’s innovation capacity with core competitiveness.

Zhang hoped that academicians, experts, sci-tech professionals and entrepreneurs would come to work and live in Hunan. He also promised to develop policy tools to optimize innovation environment and improve service level to make their wisdom bear fruits in the province.

The 24th Annual Meeting of CAST opens in Changsha, Central China’s Hunan province on June 26, 2022. [Photo/cast.org.cn]

At the opening ceremony, Zhou Ji, academician of the CAE, Yang Xuejun, president of the Academy of Military Sciences and academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Gao Hongjun, vice president of the CAS, vice president of CAST and academician of the CAS, He Qinghua, chairman of the board and chief expert of Sunward Intelligent Equipment Co., Ltd., delivered keynote speeches entitled “Intelligent Manufacturing, Digital Transformation and Intelligent Upgrade”, “Causality Data Lake”, “Strengthen National Strategic S&T Forces to Support High-level Sci-tech Self-reliance and Self-strengthening”, and “Manufacturing Highlands Originate from System” respectively. 

Xu Yanhao, deputy secretary of the leading Party members group of CAST, Zhang Guihua, member of the leading Party members group and executive secretary of the Secretariat of CAST, and Luo Hui, member of the leading Party members group of CAST, Zhu Guoxian, deputy secretary of Hunan provincial Party committee, and Hunan provincial leaders Li Dianxun, Wu Guiying, Xie Weijiang, Liu Lianyu, Chen Fei and Hu Xusheng attended the opening ceremony.

More than 5,000 people, including academicians of the CAS and the CAE and other famous experts and scholars, front-line sci-tech professionals, prestigious entrepreneurs, guests from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, experts and scholars from overseas, representatives from sci-tech organizations, sub-forums, sub-venues of 31 provincial and municipal associations for science and technology, and media reporters attended the opening ceremony both online and on site.

This year’s annual meeting consists of 35 special activities around five sectors of “Innovation Builds a New Development Pattern”, “Innovation China Energizes the Central Region”, “Carbon Peaking and Neutrality Leads a Green Development”, “Opening and Collaboration Promote Talents Base”, and “Uniting to Share Benefits of Technology”.

Serial documents including 2022 major scientific challenges, engineering and industrial technological problems, report on the development of China's S&T human resources (2020), white paper on China's open access, and annual ranking of global sci-tech associations, were released at the annual meeting, highlighting the overall efficiency and solid implementation of innovation-led science and technology for the public’s benefit and serving the development strategies of the nation.