Urban planning to pivot away from large-scale construction
The establishment of a new governance mechanism for urban planning and construction will be a priority reform task, China's housing ministry said on Saturday.
Speaking at the annual national planning conference held in Hefei, Anhui province, Qin Haixiang, vice-minister of housing and urban-rural development, said the existing mechanism is no longer suitable as the country's urban development has entered a transitional period from the previous large-scale incremental construction.
Qin said that the focus has shifted to improving the quality of existing houses while balancing quality improvement and structural development.
To deal with challenges related to this transition, efforts will be made to deepen the reform of the urban planning and design system, and to formulate and implement specialized plans based on land spatial planning, he said.
Qin said the ministry will enhance its guidance of urban design in aspects varying from urban planning to construction, to ensure that urban design will play an important role in promoting urban planning and construction.
Working groups to uncover, address industrial safety issues
The Ministry of Emergency Management said on Friday that it has dispatched 17 working groups since September for inspections in key enterprises to strengthen the prevention and control of major safety risks related to hazardous chemicals, offshore and onshore oil and gas pipelines.
The working groups will focus on identifying risks and hidden dangers in such areas as operation, equipment management and emergency response in order to verify how local authorities and enterprises are implementing a three-year action plan, issued earlier this year, to strengthen workplace safety.
During the inspections, major hidden dangers and problems, once discovered, will be reported and exposed. Illegal activities and violations of regulations will be dealt with according to the law to effectively control risks and prevent major accidents, the ministry said.
China, BRI country patents rise over past decade
Cooperation on intellectual property between China and Belt and Road Initiative partner countries has been strengthened over the past decade, with digital and green patents emerging as prominent aspects of the partnership.
Official figures released by the China National Intellectual Property Administration on Sept 4 revealed that from 2013 to last year, Chinese enterprises in BRI partner countries and related organizations had an average annual growth rate of over 20 percent in terms of cumulative patent applications and grants. Digital communication and internet companies such as Huawei, Xiaomi and Tencent stood out with a high volume of applications.
The number of patent applications and grants from BRI countries in China has grown continuously since 2013.
CNIPA spokesperson Liang Xinxin highlighted the performance of core industries in the digital economy, saying that from 2013 to last year, China's invention patents in this sector granted in BRI partner countries and related organizations experienced an average annual growth rate of 16.9 percent, and that for patents from BRI countries stood at 11.6 percent.
According to Liang, the number of China's green and low-carbon invention patent applications and grants in BRI countries experienced fast growth, rising by 65.4 percent and 49.6 percent respectively, from 2020 to last year. Leading enterprises included oil refiner Sinopec, battery manufacturer CATL, electric vehicle maker BYD, and digital communication companies like OPPO and Huawei.
