China will strive to improve the standards for techniques in key areas to help manufacturing industry upgrades, which will lay a solid foundation for the current supply-side structural reform.

A State Council executive meeting, presided over by Premier Li Keqiang on April 6, approved a plan connected with the “Made in China 2025” strategy to upgrade manufacturing, in which 90 percent of standards in key areas will meet international requirements by 2020, compared to the current 70 percent.

“Good standards are prerequisites for the sound development of an industry,” said Ning Jiajun of the Advisory Committee for State Informatization. Developing standards for key techniques is the cornerstone of a high-quality production environment for the entire industry, which we must undertake when heading forward to high-end manufacturing, Ning added.

He also stressed that the lasting power of innovation is the key to developing those standards in line with international levels, which is closely related to public recognition of innovation and the awareness of intellectual property rights protection.

But the lack of advanced standards in most industries becomes a bottleneck constraining the current industrial development and technology innovation, Ning said.

The craftsman’s spirit in producing higher-quality products was also advocated at the meeting to boost people’s confidence in Chinese-made goods. “Personnel are the core of the reform, and first we need to transform our consciousness,” Ning said.