Technology and innovation makes the difference in economic growth

Artificial intelligence, intelligent robots, e-commerce, big data: These are some of the technical advancements in the ongoing new industrial revolution that enable mankind to greatly increase productivity, thus bringing people with unprecedented opportunities to have a better future.

Just as Premier Li Keqiang said during his opening speech at the 11th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as Summer Davos being held in the coastal city of Dalian on Tuesday, farmers in China's remote mountainous areas now can see their specialty products reach urban consumers in a matter of one or two days, and with prices several times higher than if they are sold locally -- all thanks to booming online trading platforms and express delivery networks.

Li used this as an example to highlight how technology and innovation can accelerate a more inclusive economic growth that features meaningful job creation and sustainable development, a main theme of the three-day meeting.

Indeed China has a lot to share with the political and business leaders from other countries attending the meeting on how jobs can be created through promoting innovation and entrepreneurship. Over the last four to five years, more than 50 million new jobs, or 13 million annually, have been created in the country, a remarkable achievement that is also fundamental to inclusive growth that benefits all people.

All this has been made possible due to the government endeavor to drive mass entrepreneurship and innovation, which, as a result, has seen 14,000 new enterprises registered each day over the past three years, as Li said.

As part of China's bid to upgrade and transition its economy to more sustainable growth, technology and innovation are playing a key role in helping foster a rapid development of new industries and business models such as e-commerce, mobile payment and bike sharing.

The new growth momentum has not only created 70 percent of all new jobs last year, but also laid a firm foundation for China to realize its annual growth target of around 6.5 percent.

The stellar economic performance is a boon to the world economy that is still suffering from an insufficient recovery, given that China imported $1.6 trillion of goods last year, while outbound trips reached 130 million.

As Li noted in his speech, a sustainable and more open Chinese economy will bring more opportunities to the world and continue to make the country a magnet for foreign investment.

This, together with his pledge to give foreign and Chinese businesses fair and equal treatment, will surely contribute to global inclusive growth.