Kong Ting: Empowering the Construction of a Community for the Chinese Nation with New Quality Productive Forces [1]
During the ninth collective study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that forging a sense of community for the Chinese nation [1] and promoting the high-quality development of the Party’s ethnic work in the New Era is the common task of the entire Party and the people of all ethnic groups throughout the country. The goal of promoting the construction of the community for the Chinese nation in the New Era is to conform to the developmental requirements of the times and promote unity and progress in ethnic areas through construction in economic, social, and ecological dimensions, thereby forging a sense of community for the Chinese nation.
"New quality productive forces" are "advanced productive forces in which innovation plays the leading role; they break away from traditional economic growth modes and development paths for productive forces, feature high technology, high efficiency, and high quality, and align with the new development philosophy." Compared to traditional productive forces centered on factor-driven growth, new quality productive forces are centered on driving technological innovation. They rely on knowledge-based, skill-based, and innovative laborers; utilize sophisticated and cutting-edge instruments of labor; transform diverse objects of labor; and create new technologies, new economies, and new business formats that meet the requirements of Chinese-path modernization. At the Symposium on Promoting the Great Strategy for Western Development [2] in the New Era, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized the need to "develop new quality productive forces according to local conditions, explore the development of modern manufacturing and strategic emerging industries, layout the construction of future industries, and form new drivers for regional development." It is evident that empowering the construction of the community for the Chinese nation with new quality productive forces can not only promote high-quality development in ethnic areas but also deepen cultural and psychological identity within these regions, providing material security and cultural support for forging a sense of community for the Chinese nation.
Empowering Economic Construction in Ethnic Areas with New Quality Productive Forces
Constructing an economic community characterized by shared prosperity and shared benefits is the foundation and prerequisite for building the community for the Chinese nation. The abundant natural resources, diverse ethnic cultures, and unique geographical advantages of ethnic areas provide a solid foundation for the development of new quality productive forces. Through digital economic transformation, green and low-carbon development, and the upgrading of characteristic industries, new quality productive forces can effectively promote the transformation of economic development modes in ethnic areas and inject new momentum into high-quality economic development. Currently, economic construction in ethnic areas still faces many challenges, such as a weak foundation for technological innovation, arduous tasks in industrial structure transformation and upgrading, an imperfect talent support system, and imbalanced and insufficient regional development. It is necessary to leverage new quality productive forces to stimulate the vitality of economic development in ethnic areas.
First, construct an innovation system with ethnic characteristics. Based on the resource endowments and industrial foundations of ethnic areas, we must strengthen the construction of innovation platforms, promote the deep integration of technological innovation with ethnic-specific industries, and cultivate an innovation system with ethnic characteristics. Second, promote the transformation and upgrading of ethnic-specific industries. We should deeply tap into ethnic cultural characteristics and regional advantages, promote the digital and intelligent transformation of traditional ethnic handicrafts, characteristic agriculture and animal husbandry, and eco-tourism, and cultivate strategic emerging industries to create a modern industrial system with ethnic characteristics. Third, improve the talent development system in ethnic areas. We must innovate mechanisms for talent introduction, strengthen the cultivation of local talent, and establish a sound talent service system to provide intelligent talent guarantees for the development of new quality productive forces. Finally, improve the mechanisms for coordinated regional development. We should strengthen paired assistance [3] between ethnic areas and developed regions, deepen cooperation in industrial transfer, promote the orderly flow of factors, and encourage ethnic areas to better integrate into the new development pattern [4]. Economic construction in ethnic areas empowered by new quality productive forces will exhibit a new trend of innovation-driven growth, characteristic development, and collaborative linkage. On one hand, by empowering the upgrading of traditional industries through technological innovation and nurturing the growth of emerging industries, the endogenous impetus for economic development in ethnic areas will be continuously enhanced. On the other hand, the development of characteristic industries will drive employment and income growth, promote the "intermingling, exchange, and communication" (交往交流交融) [5] of all ethnic groups, and facilitate a favorable situation where all ethnic groups strive together for common unity and common prosperity. This will not only contribute to high-quality economic development in ethnic areas but also provide a solid material foundation and practical platform for forging a sense of community for the Chinese nation.
Empowering Social Construction in Ethnic Areas with New Quality Productive Forces
Constructing a social community characterized by mutual embedding and integration is the focus and key to building the community for the Chinese nation. As the cornerstone of the development of Chinese-path modernization, new quality productive forces play an important role in empowering the modernization of the social governance system and governance capacity in ethnic areas. Through digital governance, smart services, and targeted assistance, new quality productive forces can effectively improve the level of public services in ethnic areas, optimize social governance methods, promote the transformation of social structures in ethnic areas, and enhance the sense of gain, happiness, and security among the masses of all ethnic groups, thereby providing a solid social foundation for forging a sense of community for the Chinese nation. Currently, social construction in ethnic areas still faces many challenges, such as the lagging digital transformation of social governance, the uneven supply of social services, insufficient capacity for social governance innovation, and the arduous task of ethnic cultural inheritance and innovation. It is necessary to use new quality productive forces to promote the modernization of the governance system and governance capacity in ethnic areas.
First, promote the digital transformation of social governance. We must accelerate the construction of information infrastructure in ethnic areas, enhance digital governance capabilities, build a smart social governance system, and promote innovation in governance methods. Second, optimize the supply of public services. We should promote the digital and intelligent upgrading of public services such as education, healthcare, and culture, innovate service models, improve service quality, and achieve a leap in the level of basic public services. Third, innovate social governance models. We must employ new technological means such as big data and artificial intelligence to enhance the precision and intelligence of social governance and improve the social governance pattern of "consultation, common construction, and shared benefits." Finally, promote the innovative development of ethnic cultures. We should strengthen the digital protection and inheritance of ethnic cultures, promote the creative transformation and innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture, and create a new pattern of cultural dissemination with ethnic characteristics. Social development in ethnic areas empowered by new quality productive forces will exhibit new characteristics of intelligence, equalization, and synergy. In the field of social governance, digital technology will empower grassroots governance innovation and improve governance efficacy; in the field of public services, smart means will improve service quality and promote the equalization of services; in the field of cultural construction, new technologies will promote the inheritance and innovation of ethnic cultures and enhance cultural identity. This will not only help promote the modernization of social governance capacity in ethnic areas but also provide a favorable social environment and cultural atmosphere for forging a sense of community for the Chinese nation.
Empowering Ecological Construction in Ethnic Areas with New Quality Productive Forces
Constructing an ecological community characterized by the harmonious coexistence of man and nature is the direction and guarantee for building the community for the Chinese nation. Ethnic areas are important ecological barriers and resource-rich zones in China; new quality productive forces play a vital role in empowering the construction of ecological civilization in these regions. Through green technological innovation, smart environmental governance, and the cultivation of ecological industries, new quality productive forces can effectively enhance the capacity for ecological environmental governance in ethnic areas, realizing a virtuous cycle between ecological protection and economic development, and providing strong support for fortifying the ecological security barrier of the community for the Chinese nation. The rich natural resource endowments and unique ecosystems in ethnic areas provide broad space for new quality productive forces to lead the transition to green development. However, ecological construction in ethnic areas still faces many challenges, such as insufficient technological support for ecological governance, underdeveloped ecological industries, and imperfect collaborative mechanisms for regional ecological governance. It is necessary to leverage new quality productive forces to comprehensively enhance ecological environmental governance capacity.
First, strengthen technological support for ecological governance. We must increase investment in technological innovation in the field of ecological environment, develop key technologies such as intelligent monitoring and ecological restoration, and build a smart ecological environment supervision system. Second, cultivate and strengthen ecological industries. Based on the ecological resource advantages of ethnic areas, we should develop green industries such as eco-agriculture and animal husbandry, eco-tourism, and biopharmaceuticals to realize the value transformation of ecological products. Third, innovate ecological governance models. We should utilize new technological means such as big data and the Internet of Things (IoT) to improve the precision and scientific rigor of ecological governance and build a multi-party synergistic ecological governance system. Finally, improve regional ecological coordination mechanisms. We must improve ecological compensation mechanisms, deepen cross-regional cooperation in ecological governance, and construct a regional community of ecological interests. Ecological construction in ethnic areas empowered by new quality productive forces will present a new pattern characterized by technological leadership, industrial support, and shared construction. In the field of ecological governance, technological innovation will enhance governance capacity, achieving precision and scientific management; in the field of industrial development, green technological innovation will drive industrial upgrading, achieving a win-win for ecological and economic benefits; in the field of regional collaboration, digital means will promote regional synergy, creating favorable conditions for all ethnic groups to jointly protect their beautiful homes. This not only helps improve the systematic and collaborative nature of ecological construction in ethnic areas but also provides a reliable ecological guarantee and a civilizational consensus for forging a sense of community for the Chinese nation.
(The author is a researcher at the Research Base for Forging a Sense of Community for the Chinese Nation at Huazhong University of Science and Technology)
Source: Chinese Social Sciences Net – China Social Science Review (Weekly Edition)
Online Editor: Huihui