Science and technology constitute a primary productive force

Science and technology are part of the productive forces – this is a basic tenet of Marxism. At the conference on science held in June 1988, Deng Xiaoping made the point that “Science and technology constitute a primary productive force” based on his observations of contemporary science and technology and the trend of their development. This dictum was one of Deng’s main ideas on science and technology. It summarized the features of modern science and technology and highlighted the driving role of science and technology in China’s economic and social progress in the 1990s and beyond.

The 14th CPC National Congress repeated Deng’s dictum and reiterated that “To enliven the economy, we must invigorate science and technology first.” Speaking to the conference commemorating the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China in 2001, Jiang Zemin pointed out that “Science and technology constitute a primary productive force, and are the epitome and major indicator of advanced productive forces.” Addressing the International Conference on Engineering Science and Technology held in June 2014, Xi Jinping said, “China has realized rapid economic and social development since the People’s Republic was founded in 1949, especially since it adopted reform and opening up. Innovation in engineering science and technology has made invaluable contributions to this. In the world today, science and technology play a prominent role as a primary productive force.”

Currently, science and technology, and high technology in particular, are becoming a decisive force for economic and social development, and a focus of competitive strength of all countries. The core competitiveness of a nation is increasingly reflected by its capability to foster, allocate and manage intelligent resources and intellectual property, and to create and apply intellectual property. To fully leverage science and technology as a primary productive force is key to realizing China’s socialist modernization.

科學技術是第一生產力

“科學技術是生產力”是馬克思主義的基本原理。1988年6月，鄧小平根據科學技術發展的現狀和趨勢，在全國科學大會上首次提出“科學技術是第一生產力”。這一論斷是鄧小平科技思想的首要觀點和精髓，既是現代科學技術發展的重要特點，也是科學技術發展的必然結果，為中國90年代乃至跨世紀經濟和社會發展提供強大驅動力。

1992年黨的十四大進一步指出，“科學技術是第一生產力，振興經濟首先振興科技”。2001年，江澤民在慶祝中國共產黨成立80周年大會上的重要講話中指出，“科學技術是第一生產力，而且是先進生產力的集中體現和主要標志”。2014年6月，習近平在國際工程科技大會上強調：“新中國成立60多年特別是改革開放30多年來，中國經濟社會快速發展，其中工程科技創新驅動功不可沒。當今世界，科學技術作為第一生產力的作用愈益凸顯。”

當今時代，科學技術特別是高技術正日益成為經濟社會發展的決定性力量，成為綜合國力競爭的焦點。國家核心競爭力越來越表現為對智力資源和智慧成果的培育、配置、調控能力，表現為對知識產權的擁有、運用能力。充分發揮科學技術“第一生產力”的作用，是實現中國社會主義現代化戰略目標的關鍵。