Xu Caihui and Han Wenlong: Methodology and Practical Routes for Improving Systems and Mechanisms to Develop New Quality Productive Forces According to Local Conditions

In 2024, during a session with the Jiangsu delegation at the Two Sessions ^[1], General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must firmly grasp the primary task of high-quality development and develop new quality productive forces according to local conditions." This serves as an important instruction not only for Jiangsu but for China’s overall economic and social development. The Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization (hereinafter referred to as the Decision) proposes to "improve the institutions and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions." This aims to promote high-quality development and realize Chinese-path modernization through deepening reform. During his inspection tours of various regions, General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the necessity of acting according to local conditions, personally venturing into the grassroots ^[2] to understand local resource endowments, industrial foundations, and scientific research conditions, thereby providing scientific guidance for local development.

I. The Important Evaluative Significance of Improving Institutions and Mechanisms for Developing New Quality Productive Forces According to Local Conditions

Against the backdrop of global technological and industrial transformation, the importance of developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions has become increasingly prominent. This concept contains profound wisdom: it corresponds to the actual conditions of different regions while flexibly adjusting development strategies according to national master policies to ensure the continuous, efficient, and green development of productive forces. This represents an inheritance and development of Marxist theories of productive forces and embodies the unique path of Chinese-path modernization. A deep exploration of its important evaluative significance is of vital importance for achieving high-quality development and promoting social progress.

1. An important guarantee for further liberating and developing productive forces and building a modern powerful nation

During a collective study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that developing new quality productive forces is an inherent requirement and a major focal point for promoting high-quality development. This assertion is not only an innovative development of Marxist productive force theory but also the latest achievement of Xi Jinping Economic Thought. In academic research, scholars generally believe that developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions is an inevitable requirement of the objective laws governing the development of productive forces. Marx and Engels examined productive forces from the perspective of historical materialism; proceeding from the interconnection between productive forces and relations of production, they regarded productive forces as the decisive force determining the relations of production. Productive forces are not only the material strength to meet the actual needs of the people but also the fundamental driving force for people to create history. As an advanced form of productive force, new quality productive forces drive China toward higher-quality development. Developing these forces according to local conditions plays a key role in enhancing regional economic competitiveness. Improving the institutions and mechanisms for this development provides institutional guarantees for combining resource endowments, leveraging regional characteristic advantages, preventing "rushing headlong into action" ^[3] in industrial development, promoting deep industrial transformation, stimulating local innovation vitality, and promoting comprehensive, coordinated regional development. It lays a solid foundation for the mid-century goal of fully building a great modern socialist country. For example, under the pressure of transforming and upgrading traditional industries, old industrial bases such as Northeast China have adopted development strategies tailored to local conditions, actively introducing digital-intelligent and green technologies to transform and upgrade traditional industries. By supporting enterprises in using these technologies, they have pushed traditional industries to glow with new vitality.

2. A major manifestation of implementing the New Development Philosophy and constructing institutions and mechanisms to support comprehensive innovation

The New Development Philosophy emphasizes innovation-driven growth, requiring that innovation drive sustained and healthy economic and social development. New quality productive forces are precisely the concrete manifestation of innovation in economic development; they represent the direction of advanced productive forces characterized by high technology, high efficiency, and high quality. Constructing a modern economic system requires comprehensive innovation support, and the rapid development of new quality productive forces depends on a series of innovative activities, including scientific, institutional, and managerial innovation. By establishing and improving institutions and mechanisms, various resources can be integrated more effectively and the innovation environment optimized, thereby supporting the development of new quality productive forces and further promoting economic transformation and upgrading. Furthermore, the strategy of developing according to local conditions reflects full consideration of regional differences and practical realities. Different regions vary in economic foundations, resource advantages, and industrial characteristics; therefore, when developing new quality productive forces, corresponding policies and measures must be formulated based on the actual situation of each region. This approach helps fully utilize the advantages and potential of each region and achieve sustainable economic development.

Improving institutions and mechanisms is also the key to breaking through the bottlenecks restricting high-quality development. Currently, China’s high-quality development faces issues such as a relative shortage of core technologies, ineffective or slow transformation of traditional industries, uneven factor allocation, imperfect market entry and exit mechanisms, inadequate local policy formulation and execution, and incomplete regulatory systems for emerging industries. By deepening reform and improving these mechanisms, more powerful guarantees and support can be provided to increase the intensity of new quality productive force development, thereby driving high-quality economic transformation. For example, the Yubei District of Chongqing strengthened the institutional supply for the new energy vehicle (NEV) industry and improved the coordination mechanism for the upstream, midstream, and downstream industrial chains. By utilizing mechanical arms and intelligent robots in collaborative operations, an NEV can roll off the assembly line in as little as 60 seconds. This mechanism has promoted the rise of component supporting enterprises and formed a synergistic effect within the industrial system, embodying the New Development Philosophy.

3. An inevitable requirement for comprehensively deepening reform and grasping historical initiative

Currently, the digital wave is sweeping the globe, and the technological revolution and industrial transformation are accelerating. China has "achieved a transition in reform from local exploration and ice-breaking breakthroughs to systemic integration and comprehensive deepening." In the current global economic environment, to enhance national competitiveness and development potential, the development of new quality productive forces must be accelerated. This requires all regions to formulate development strategies consistent with their own characteristics based on their actual conditions. Improving the institutions and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions is precisely intended to meet this demand and grasp historical initiative, allowing for more precise alignment with regional realities and promoting the optimized allocation and efficient utilization of resources. Comprehensively deepening reform is an important driving force for social progress. Reform can break down the institutional obstacles shackling development, providing broader space and a superior environment for the development of new quality productive forces.

In improving these institutions and mechanisms to better adapt to the "new normal" ^[4] of economic development, we must fully utilize the core role of the market in resource allocation and, on this basis, further optimize the functions of the government to achieve high-quality economic development. This reflects both the inherent requirements of the socialist market economy and a profound grasp of historical development trends. From a practical perspective, developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions has already achieved phased results. Various regions have explored paths for new quality productive forces that fit their actual situations based on their own resource endowments, industrial foundations, and development needs. For example, the Chengdu Pilot Zone for Innovative Development of the Digital Economy persists in using the "Smart Rongcheng" ^[5] construction as a lead and the "Wang" (王)-shaped management structure ^[6] as a working method to build a data element empowerment system. It has innovatively constructed a data resource development and utilization model of "regulating the first level and liberalizing the second level," promoting the deep integration of digital technology with the real economy and advancing the total-domain digital transformation of urban economy, life, and governance. The Hangzhou Pilot Zone for Innovative Development of the Digital Economy created a "City Brain," focusing on the pressing problems of the masses ^[7] and the modernization of urban governance. Aiming to eliminate "urban diseases," it uses cutting-edge digital technology to drive urban governance innovation, constructing a "Three-in-One Network" (三个一网) architecture—"One Network for All" government services, "One Network for Unified Management" of city operations, and "One Network for Common Governance" of social governance. This has played an important role in common prosperity, safeguarding the Asian Games, and grassroots governance, gradually forming a set of scientifically effective digital governance system solutions for megacities. These cases have not only driven local economic growth but also injected new vitality into the national economy. Therefore, improving these institutions and mechanisms is an inevitable requirement for comprehensively deepening reform and grasping historical initiative.

4. A realistic necessity for upholding the people-centered development philosophy and promoting common prosperity

The Marxist historical materialist view holds that the people are the subjects and driving force of history, the subjects who create social material and spiritual wealth, and the decisive force in social change. General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized many times: "The people’s position is the fundamental political position of the Communist Party of China. To uphold the people-centered development philosophy is to always adhere to the people’s position, put the people in the highest position in our hearts, and take the people’s aspirations for a better life as our goal." The Decision points out the need to "persist in being people-centered, respect the people's principal position and pioneering spirit, respond to the people's calls through reform, and ensure that reform is for the people, relies on the people, and its fruits are shared by the people." In presiding over the sixth meeting of the Central Commission for Comprehensively Deepening Reform, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized, while discussing the optimization of reform implementation mechanisms, that we must "test reform by actual results and the satisfaction of the masses."

Improving the institutions and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions—leveraging the power of technological innovation and industrial upgrading to drive the economy toward high-quality development—will further improve development efficiency, better meet the people’s growing needs for a better life, and improve people's well-being. New quality productive forces are productive forces where the factors of production manifest in entirely new qualitative states. Driven by digital technology, they place higher demands on national quality, skills, and cognitive levels, which also means that in the digital era, we must prevent the aggravation of income inequality and unemployment. As a populous nation, how to stimulate the innovative vitality of the people, cultivate talent resources compatible with the development of new quality productive forces, and promote the comprehensive development of the citizenry has become a practical task. The government's vigorous promotion of vocational education and skills training can stimulate the innovative vitality of laborers, allowing citizens to continuously learn new knowledge and master new skills at work, providing a broader platform for development and enhancing personal value. At the same time, we must adhere to the Party’s mass line and improve mechanisms for "seeking advice from the people, asking the people about their needs, and evaluating results by the people." By increasing opportunities for ordinary people to participate in technological decision-making, we can ensure that technological development better serves the interests of the majority and achieves common prosperity. For example, in the Chilechuan Smart Ecological Pasture in Inner Mongolia, the application of fully intelligent milking robots and automatic manure cleaning robots has not only improved production efficiency and milk quality—driving the development of the local dairy industry—but has also allowed ordinary people to keep up with technological changes in artificial intelligence, promoting skill enhancement and income growth for related laborers in the industrial chain.

II. The Methodology for Improving Institutions and Mechanisms for Developing New Quality Productive Forces According to Local Conditions

Methodology is an important tool for guiding us in understanding and transforming the world, and it is also the driving force for continuous innovation and development. A correct methodology helps us determine direction and choose appropriate methods, thereby reaching accurate conclusions. In the process of improving institutions and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions, only by continuously summarizing practical experience and exploring new methodologies can we better adapt to the needs of the times. This guides us in constructing more precise, efficient, and high-quality institutions and mechanisms, developing new quality productive forces, and promoting the realization of Chinese-path modernization.

1. Adhering to the combination of goal-orientation and problem-orientation

Developing institutions and mechanisms for new quality productive forces according to local conditions requires a combination of goal-orientation and problem-orientation. It must reflect the structural and content advancement of new quality productive forces and demonstrate the comprehensive integration of institutions and mechanisms. The series of major reform measures proposed in the Decision adhere to this combination, adapting to the needs of advancing Chinese-path modernization and responding to the expectations of the masses and society. They "target problems" (奔着问题去), focusing on improving systems and breaking down institutional and mechanistic obstacles. General Secretary Xi Jinping, while presiding over the sixth meeting of the Central Commission for Comprehensively Deepening Reform, proposed: "We must strengthen the systemic integration of reforms, enhance the consistency of reform policy orientations, actively evaluate the impact on economic and social development, and form a synergy between reform and development." Political economy views the social economy as a complex system in which various elements are interconnected and interact. Developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions involves multiple disciplinary fields such as economics, politics, sociology, and technology. Therefore, the structure of its institutions and mechanisms should be characterized by comprehensive integration, capable of merging theories and methods from various disciplines and comprehensively considering the interactions and influences between elements (factors of production, data factors, resource factors, policy factors, etc.). From the national level to the local level, and down to the enterprise level, a collaborative and linked mechanism should be formed between all levels to create systemic solutions and exert policy synergy to jointly promote the development of new quality productive forces.

The Decision clarifies the general goal of further comprehensively deepening reform:

“Continue to improve and develop the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and promote the modernization of China’s system and capacity for governance. By 2035, we will have finished building a high-standard socialist market economy in all respects, further improved the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, basically realized the modernization of our system and capacity for governance, and basically realized socialist modernization. This will lay a solid foundation for building China into a great modern socialist country in all respects by the middle of this century.” The ultimate goal of improving the institutions and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions is the “development of new quality productive forces.” New quality productive forces possess advanced characteristics in both structure and content; as a concrete manifestation of advanced productive forces, they are characterized by high technology, high efficiency, and high quality. They are expressed through new constituent elements and reliance on new technologies, new industries, new business forms, and new fields. They encompass four developmental requirements: a new essence, high quality, high standards, and a "qualitative" advantage. These align precisely with the requirements for transformation in the quality, efficiency, and drivers of economic development pursued by Chinese-path modernization. They are conducive to promoting high-quality development in the Chinese economy, thereby better meeting the people's needs for a better life—itself a major objective of Chinese-path modernization. Simultaneously, Chinese-path modernization provides broad space and opportunities for the development of new quality productive forces.

However, in the process of "the shift in reform from local exploration and ice-breaking breakthroughs to systemic integration and comprehensive deepening," many practical challenges remain. As China's economy enters the New Normal ^[8], traditional modes of economic growth have become unsustainable. This requires enterprises to innovate continuously and improve technical levels and production efficiency; it also requires guidance and support from local government policies—a long-term and complex process. With the decline in birth rates and an intensifying aging population, the labor market may be affected, increasing pressure on the social security system. There is a relative shortage of high-end talent, particularly in fields involving "chokehold" technologies ^[9]. All of these pose new challenges to national development. Under the circumstances of increasingly tightening resource and environmental constraints, solving the difficult problem of how to achieve sustainable economic development while protecting the environment and conserving resources—according to local conditions—is a necessity in the process of Chinese-path modernization.

Therefore, the institutions and mechanisms for developing productive forces according to local conditions under "goal-orientation and problem-orientation" must possess an integrative nature. This is conducive to enhancing overall efficacy, whether in cross-departmental coordination, cross-regional cooperation, or international cooperation, and whether in the fields of intra-regional industrial optimization and upgrading, key technological innovation, or green development. Such mechanisms provide a guarantee for better leveraging the structural and substantive advancement of new quality productive forces.

2. Adhering to the Marxist View of Systems

The Marxist view of systems possesses not only significant epistemological significance but also important praxeological significance. It provides a scientific theoretical tool for us to examine the reality of development, solve development problems, reshape the future of development, and advance the practice of development. Although Marx himself did not directly use the expression "view of systems" (系统观), this thought has long permeated dialectical thinking, and many domestic scholars have conducted research on this. The Marxist view of systems is a scientific systematic outlook; it originates from the materialist dialectics founded by Marx and Engels and has been enriched and developed by subsequent Marxists into a relatively systematic theoretical framework. This framework treats society and nature as organic wholes composed of interconnected and interacting elements. It emphasizes understanding things through the connections between the whole and the parts, and between the internal and the external, holding that all things are in a state of constant change and development. Marx noted: "Productive forces, that is, the development of productive capacities and their elements." Whether it is new quality productive forces or the development of regions themselves, and whether it is the international situation or domestic society, all are in a state of dynamic change.

From the Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues Concerning Comprehensively Deepening Reform at the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee to the Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, progress is evident. From "comprehensively deepening" to "further comprehensively deepening," from the six "closely centering on" to the seven "focuses," and from four direct expressions regarding the view of systems to ten such expressions, it is easy to see that adhering to the Marxist view of systems is an important methodological compliance for thoroughly implementing the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee and achieving the goals of the Decision. In his "Speech at the Second Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee," General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized once again: "To persist in the systemic concept, we must coordinate all factors, implement dialectical policies, and handle major relationships such as those between the economy and society, government and the market, efficiency and fairness, vitality and order, and development and security, so as to enhance the systemic, holistic, and coordinated nature of reform. These principles must be unswervingly upheld and continuously enriched and developed in the practice of reform." Reform is rooted in the present while looking toward the long term. It also requires a dynamic balance between national standards and regional resources, traditional physical economies and non-physical digital economies, and inheritance and innovation.

Therefore, whether from the perspective of theoretical advancement, the essence of the development of productive forces, or the methodological standpoint reflected in the Decision, adhering to the Marxist view of systems and improving the institutions and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions can provide a long-term guarantee for the enduring development of such forces.

3. Adhering to the Concrete Analysis of Concrete Conditions

The national level of development for new quality productive forces is not a simple sum of the levels of various localities. Improving the institutions and mechanisms for developing these forces according to local conditions is likewise not a simple addition of various institutional types. "The whole possesses a complete integrity; the whole is different from its parts, and integrity is not equal to the simple additive combination of the properties of each part." "According to local conditions" (因地制宜) is based on Marxist materialist dialectics and the idea of seeking truth from facts. It embodies multiple principles: the Marxist principle of the particularity of contradictions, the principle of seeking truth from facts through the concrete analysis of concrete conditions, and the materialist dialectical views on connection and development. China's regions have significant differences in terms of geographical location, industrial structure, ecological environment, and scientific and technological innovation capabilities. Developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions respects the objective reality of China's unbalanced and inadequate development, follows the objective laws of the development of productive forces, and avoids blindly leaping over or ignoring the necessary stages of such development. Formulating differentiated development strategies based on their own actual conditions allows localities to give full play to their initiative and creativity, activating the subjective initiative of regional development. Developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions is conducive to eliminating institutional and mechanistic barriers and promoting deep-level reforms, including in the economic and scientific-technological systems. This aims to clear the bottlenecks and obstacles restricting the development of new quality productive forces, opening up a path and providing institutional guarantees for the development of new-type productive forces in various regions. It can also promote cooperation between regions, allowing for the mutual supplementation of advantages in resource endowments and development levels, achieving resource sharing and mutual benefit. This helps break down regional barriers, promotes the formation of a unified national market, and enhances the competitiveness and vitality of the overall economy.

Therefore, by improving the institutions and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions and adhering to the concrete analysis of concrete conditions, we can reflect the hierarchical nature between macro national strategies and micro local realities, internal and external regional factors, government, industry and enterprises, and economy and ecology. This will enhance the coupling of institutions and mechanisms and promote truly coordinated regional economic development.

III. The Practical Path for Improving the Institutions and Mechanisms for Developing New Quality Productive Forces According to Local Conditions Based on the View of Systems

A practical path based on the Marxist view of systems is necessary not only because of its theoretical advancement but also because it embodies the standpoints and views of the Decision. It is chosen not only because it can effectively combine "goal-orientation and problem-orientation" with the concrete analysis of concrete conditions, but also because it represents valuable experience in comprehensively deepening reform and is a realistic requirement for the current stage of development of China's new quality productive forces.

The current phased achievements in developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions bear out such statements in the Decision as "the shift in reform from local exploration and ice-breaking breakthroughs to systemic integration and comprehensive deepening." For example, the Chuan-Yu Gaozhu New Area (川渝高竹新区), as the nation's first cross-provincial jointly built new area, shoulders the major mission of "exploring the reform of the appropriate separation of economic zones and administrative regions." Through three years of pilot development, it has grown from a "regional margin" to a "strategic frontier," flourishing through coordinated development. Shaoxing City has adhered to a clear orientation of focusing on the grassroots, developing and promoting the "Zhe-Li-Xing-Cun-Zhi-She" ^[10] digital application. This continuously consolidates the forces of grassroots governance and improves its efficacy, providing successful experience for the sustained deepening of reforms in long-term mechanisms for reducing the burden on the grassroots and stimulating new momentum in grassroots governance. Since 2022, after the official launch of the "Eastern Data and Western Computing" project ^[11], the National High-Performance Computer Engineering Technology Research Center in Tianjin has explored the construction of a supercomputing interconnection platform characterized by heterogeneous integration, application leadership, and the promotion of data interconnectivity. This has pushed forward the construction of an integrated national computing power network, empowering economic and social development with initial success. Against the new era background, and having completed "local exploration and ice-breaking breakthroughs," adhering to the systemic concept is an inevitable requirement for promoting "further comprehensively deepening reform" and "realizing Chinese-path modernization." It is also an inevitable requirement for the further development of new quality productive forces and for improving the institutions and mechanisms to develop them according to local conditions. Combining the four core principles of the Marxist view of systems (wholeness, dynamism, structure, and non-additivity) with the connotation and function of these institutions and mechanisms, this article will construct a "Five-S" practical path from the following four aspects to ensure that development according to local conditions is characterized by "Strength," "Precision," "Speed," "Breadth," and "Depth."

1. Adhering to the Principle of Wholeness to Enhance the Coupling of the Policy Support System and Guarantee the Strength of Development

In the practice of improving the institutions and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions, it is necessary to adhere to the principle of wholeness, focusing on the organization and connection of various elements within the system and enhancing the degree of coupling between various laws, regulations, and policy support systems. The Marxist view of systems holds that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts; the properties and functions of a system as a whole are not a simple addition of the properties of its parts, but rather an interconnected, interdependent, inclusive, and transitional relationship between elements that couples into a brand-new holistic effect. Comprehensively deepening reform involves all fields of economic and social development; the comprehensiveness of the tasks, the depth of the content, and the breadth of the influence are unprecedented. General Secretary Xi Jinping noted: "Reform must pay more attention to systemic integration. We must persist in planning and promoting it with a global vision and systemic thinking, strengthen the coordination and matching of various reform measures, and promote reform measures in all fields and aspects to work in the same direction and form a synergy to enhance overall efficacy"; "We must holistically plan the deepening of reform across all aspects, levels, and elements, focusing on promoting various reforms to stimulate each other, interact positively, and coordinate effectively"; "All regions and departments must establish the idea of the 'whole country as a single chessboard,' consciously act within the overall situation, and go all out to implement the principles, measures, and requirements determined by the Party Central Committee without deviation." In comprehensively deepening reform to advance Chinese-path modernization and improving the institutions and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions, we must first adhere to the principle of wholeness. We must work on overall coordination, comprehensively understanding the correlations and coupling between various fields, institutions, and mechanisms, to provide a powerful institutional guarantee and policy support for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions. Focus should be placed on improving and coupling the following systems:

First, improve the new-type whole-of-nation system ^[12], carry out strategic layout from a holistic perspective, and strengthen the cultivation of scientific and technological talent and the collaborative mechanism for industry-study-research innovation, as well as in key fields—especially...

a collaborative research system for "chokehold" ^[13] fields. Improving the new-type whole-nation system ^[14] is essential to leveraging the advantages of China's socialist system in "concentrating resources to accomplish major tasks," advancing high-level maritime self-reliance and strength in science and technology, and firmly grasping the lifeblood of technology and the initiative for development in our own hands. Therefore, whether in science and technology, education, culture, or industry, we must persist in the Party's overall leadership to ensure that the development of new quality productive forces according to local conditions always advances in the correct direction. Second, we must persist in being people-centered, ensuring that the fruits of modernization benefit all people more fairly and equitably. Taking the improvement of people's wellbeing as the starting point and ultimate goal, we must integrate the new expectations of the masses into every link of the institutional mechanism. Regarding the specific alignment of institutional mechanisms, we must persist in the basic socialist economic system and construct coordination mechanisms where the government, market, and society act in concert. We should build a governance pattern characterized by the unified leadership of Party organizations, the performance of duties by the government in accordance with the law, and the synergy of diverse subjects. To optimize the specific strategies of the new-type whole-nation system, holistic strategic planning is key to ensuring that the direction of technological innovation and key tasks are aligned with major national needs. For example, we should identify the heavy and difficult points in "chokehold" fields, strengthen the application and promotion of relevant achievements, and build "research and development alliances" across borders and regions. We must build a comprehensive, multi-level system for training scientific and technological talent that covers basic education, higher education, vocational education, and continuing education. By strengthening the practical teaching component, students can master more abilities and experience in solving practical problems at school. We should create a favorable atmosphere that respects knowledge, talent, and innovation, providing scientific and technological talent with broad space for development and a good working environment. We should also build platforms for industry-university-research cooperation, increase special funding support, and promote deep cooperation and exchange between universities, research institutes, and enterprises. In terms of cooperation results, we must establish a scientific and reasonable benefit-sharing mechanism to protect the rights and interests of all parties during the cooperation process and stimulate their enthusiasm for participation.

Second, we must further deepen market reforms and establish unified market rules to provide more "national standards" and "institutional spatial arrangements" for the development of regional new quality productive forces. Establishing a unified national market is an inevitable requirement for building a high-level socialist market economy system, a foundational support for constructing the new development pattern ^[15], and an important guarantee for promoting high-quality development. It helps expand market scale and capacity, deepen the division of labor and cooperation, promote comprehensive competition, reduce transaction costs, and enhance the efficiency of market resource allocation in various regions. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the Party Central Committee has attached great importance to the construction of a unified national market and has achieved phased results in improving the market access system, perfecting the market supervision system, strengthening transportation infrastructure construction, and reinforcing information exchange and trading market infrastructure. However, challenges remain, such as incomplete institutional norms in some fields, relatively slow development of factor markets, local protectionism, and market fragmentation. In perfecting the institutional mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions, the national level needs to improve the nationally unified system of market rules and standards to ensure consistency across regions and industries in market access, transaction rules, and regulatory standards. The local level also needs to deepen market-oriented reforms and break down barriers of local protectionism and market fragmentation. We must promote the government's streamlining of administration and delegation of power, reduce improper intervention and restrictions on the market, and truly achieve a balance between a "proactive government" and an "effective market." At the same time, we should strengthen the enforcement of anti-monopoly and anti-unfair competition laws to maintain the order of fair competition in the market.

Third, we must improve the legal system, especially in the field of the digital economy, to provide legal guarantees for major reforms of new quality productive forces. In the explanation of the Decision ^[16], it is mentioned that we must "uphold the comprehensive rule of law, deepen reform and advance Chinese-path modernization on the track of the rule of law, ensuring the unity of reform and the rule of law, so that major reforms are based on law and reform results are elevated into legal systems in a timely manner." As mentioned earlier, new quality productive forces possess many non-physical elements and dematerialized new objects of labor. The development of the digital economy and the iteration of artificial intelligence have laid the foundation for developing new quality productive forces. Various aspects such as data security, data quality governance, credit systems, privacy governance, intellectual property protection, and risk assessment and response mechanisms for industrial and supply chain security require laws, regulations, or systems for standardization. Data legality is the prerequisite for ensuring the orderly flow of data intellectual property. Unclear attributes of data rights will lead to undefined rights and responsibilities of subjects, which can easily trigger disputes and hinder the free circulation and sharing of data. In formulating institutional plans to promote the growth of the digital economy, it is necessary to improve the policy framework for digital industrialization and industrial digitization, and accelerate the construction of mechanisms for data ownership confirmation, market transactions, distribution of rights, and protection of interests. The value of data lies in its circulation and use, and the basis for circular flow lies in the confirmation of data right attributes—that is, clarifying what civil rights and interests relevant subjects enjoy over data from a legal level. Regarding the provisions on intellectual property in our country's Civil Code, the types of data that can be protected by existing intellectual property and the capitalization of data property rights still need further improvement and clarification. Therefore, in the relevant sections of legal provisions, it is necessary to expand the objects of intellectual property protection through legislation or judicial interpretation. In terms of data quality governance, data security, and privacy governance, it is necessary to further refine the steps of data governance for artificial intelligence. Further exploration is still needed regarding the optimization of product subjects, the expansion of application scenarios, and the final evolutionary forms to meet the privacy protection needs for user and corporate data in different industries. We must increase the intensity of law enforcement, supervision, and cross-border law enforcement cooperation, using modern information technology such as big data and artificial intelligence to feedback into the improvement of institutional mechanisms, and build warning and emergency handling mechanisms for infringements. We should actively participate in the formulation and negotiation of international intellectual property rules, promote the establishment of a fair, reasonable, and transparent international intellectual property governance system, establish cross-border intellectual property law enforcement cooperation mechanisms, and strengthen communication and coordination with international law enforcement agencies to effectively combat cross-border and transnational crimes utilizing digital tools. We must strengthen publicity and education at all levels, from the national level down to the local grassroots, using multiple channels and forms to enhance publicity and increase public awareness and emphasis on relevant rights and obligations.

2. Persist in structural principles, improve high-level technological innovation institutional mechanisms, and guarantee the precision and speed of development

In the practice of perfecting institutional mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions, it is necessary to adhere to structural principles, scientifically grasp the principal contradiction and the principal aspect of the contradiction ^[17], and focus on strengthening institutional mechanisms for high-level technological innovation and the growth of strategic emerging industries. The structural principle of the Marxist view of systems holds that the structure of a system is an important factor determining its overall nature and function. Elements in a system do not exist in isolation but are interconnected through specific ways into an organic whole. To optimize the system structure, we must identify the central elements that play a decisive role in the entire system to drive the development of the whole situation. At the same time, dialectics tells us that the development of things is always in a state of contradictory change; among contradictions, there are primary and secondary ones, and we must grasp the principal contradiction and the principal aspect of the contradiction. The "core elements" and "key nodes" within the system are the principal contradictions that play a leading role among many contradictions. By grasping the principal contradiction and its principal aspect, and viewing and resolving problems from a global, source-based, and fundamental perspective, other problems will be solved easily.

General Secretary Xi Jinping also pointed out in his "Speech at the Second Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee" that we should "focus more on highlighting key points, focus more on the effectiveness of reform, and apply force precisely, synergistically, and persistently." He noted that "in implementation, we can neither fight alone or advance in isolation, nor can we act in a disorganized way or 'grab the eyebrows and the beard all at once' ^[18]. We must persist in 'establishing the new before breaking the old' ^[19], accurately grasp the strategic priorities of reform, reasonably arrange the sequence, rhythm, and timing of reform measures, and proceed step-by-step and steadily according to the urgency—neither overshooting nor lagging behind." All regions and departments "must closely integrate with reality, act according to local conditions, take proactive initiatives, identify the principal contradictions and the principal aspects of the contradictions they face, and formulate specific reform measures that conform to reality." At the same time, the Decision points out the need to "strengthen the innovation of key core technologies, frontier leading technologies, modern engineering technologies, and disruptive technologies, and strengthen the institutional supply for new fields and new tracks," as well as "improve policies and governance systems for promoting the development of strategic industries such as next-generation information technology, artificial intelligence, aerospace, new energy, new materials, high-end equipment, biomedicine, and quantum technology, to guide the healthy and orderly development of emerging industries."

Under the current situation influenced by various factors such as the international landscape, the domestic economic situation, and the plateau period of development within industries, how can we perfect institutional mechanisms to further increase speed and efficiency in the process of developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions? The practical driving force of new quality productive forces lies in new technologies. Strategic emerging industries are based on major technological breakthroughs and major development needs, while the growth of these industries promotes further high-level technological innovation. Therefore, we must still improve the two "central elements"—the high-level technological innovation institutional mechanism and the mechanism for strengthening strategic industries—in combination with local resource endowments, to improve the precision of developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions, release the "multiplier effect" of data factors, and increase the speed of development.

On the one hand, we must continuously strengthen relevant top-level design, formulate and improve standards for relevant industrial construction, enhance future planning, optimize industrial structure, and integrate local government industrial planning with the national high-quality development strategy. In July 2024, four departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology jointly released the Guidelines for the Construction of a Comprehensive Standardization System for the National Artificial Intelligence Industry (2024 Edition), which aims to systematically plan artificial intelligence standardization work and accelerate the establishment of a standards system that meets the needs of high-quality development in the AI industry and the deep empowerment of "AI+". This move strengthens the fundamental role of unified standards in promoting technological innovation, assisting corporate development, leading industrial upgrading, and ensuring industrial security, providing policy guidance for more effectively promoting the process of AI-enabled new industrialization. On the other hand, relevant market entities should improve cooperation mechanisms with universities and research institutes, enhance the precision and foresight of market judgment, timely grasp changes in market demand, and strengthen their own technological and management innovation. Simultaneously, local governments can cultivate diverse market entities, strengthen guidance, and support different types of enterprises—such as strategic emerging industries, high-tech enterprises, and application enterprises—to compete fairly and accelerate development.

3. Leverage the principle of non-additivity, strengthen the "resonance effect" of regional coordinated development, and guarantee the breadth of development

In the practice of perfecting institutional mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions, it is necessary to leverage the principle of non-additivity ^[20], improve the comprehensive coordination institutional mechanisms between various elements and regions, and achieve a "resonance effect" of regional high-quality development. The principle of non-additivity in the Marxist view of systems emphasizes that the functional performance of the part and the whole is not a simple combination of elements. In perfecting the institutional mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions, the new characteristics brought by regional coordinated development—such as industrial synergy, technology sharing, and talent flow between regions—cannot be achieved by a simple addition of regions. It is necessary to align with the inherent requirements of new quality productive forces from a holistic perspective, plan and coordinate systematically, enhance institutional coupling, and increase the strength of institutional supply. At the same time, from a structural consideration, based on the different statuses and functions of various elements in the development of new quality productive forces, we must grasp the principal contradiction and the principal aspect of the contradiction, seize key areas to advance systems hierarchically, and achieve high-quality, high-speed, and precise development while also fully considering the implementation costs of institutional mechanisms and how to maximize their effectiveness.

As mentioned earlier, new quality productive forces are more intelligent, flexible, open, and green in terms of laborers, objects of labor, tools of production, modes of production, and growth models. They have largely liberated the limitations of time and space, achieving comprehensive digital management by relying on advanced information technology and digital systems. Through the application of digital technology, enterprises find it easier to adapt to constant changes in the external environment, adjust and respond to market changes more quickly, and promote the efficient flow of production factors. In their development, they break away from traditional growth paths and conform to the new development philosophy. At the same time, the current objective economic situation at home and abroad presents challenges, and various localities are in...

While "burying one's head" to focus on local development in accordance with local conditions, one must also "look up" to pay attention to the integrated development of resources across all regions of the country. This not only helps reduce economic, managerial, and administrative costs while improving resource utilization efficiency, but also serves to avoid "following the trend," "homogenization," and "bubble-ization." It truly embodies the principle of developing in light of local conditions and stimulates a "resonance effect" for high-quality development. This forms a developmental synergy between individual points, lines, and planes, as well as between different localities, between localities and regions, and between localities and the nation at large. Through mutual empowerment, it promotes the harmonious and symbiotic development of various elements within and outside a region, thereby expanding the breadth of developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions. Therefore, in perfecting the systems and mechanisms for developing new quality productive forces according to local conditions, we should fully apply the principle of non-additivity ^[21] to further innovate mechanisms for coordinated regional development in a comprehensive sense.

First, unclog "external" synergy mechanisms. We must promote cooperation and coordination between different regions and establish regional cooperative development mechanisms. By strengthening policy communication, information sharing, and resource sharing between regions, we can promote the interconnection and coordinated development of regional markets. By strengthening collaborative innovation across different regions, we can build regional innovation communities, break down geographical restrictions, and achieve resource sharing and complementary advantages. This helps accelerate the emergence of breakthrough technological innovations and drives the formation and development of new quality productive forces. As strategic core areas for national high-quality development, the collaborative innovation activities of city clusters are crucial for the layout of new quality productive forces. We should fully tap into the potential for collaborative innovation within city clusters and fight the battle for breakthroughs in key core technologies ^[22] on a region-by-region basis. Focusing on the integration of elements, we should further clear regional coordination channels and promote the rational flow and effective allocation of productive factors such as capital, technology, and talent between regions.

We should establish leadership bodies for regional cooperative development—for example, forming leadership groups composed of regional governments and relevant departments—to be responsible for the overall coordination of regional cooperation matters and to promote the implementation of new mechanisms for coordinated regional development. On the basis of pilot programs, the fields and scope of regional cooperation can be further broadened, such as in industrial cooperation, scientific and technological innovation cooperation, and ecological and environmental cooperation, forming an all-dimensional and multi-level regional cooperation pattern. Meanwhile, during the process of regional cooperation, reasonable profit-sharing mechanisms should be established to ensure that the interests of all regions are protected and balanced. Achieving win-win outcomes through cooperation will help stimulate the enthusiasm and initiative of all regions to participate. Based on the actual situation and needs of regional development, targeted policy measures should be improved to support the formation and development of new quality productive forces. These policies may include fiscal support, tax incentives, and talent recruitment. For example, in the process of the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta, cities have formed a clear division of labor and cooperative relationships, jointly driving the overall development of the region and forming the Yangtze River Economic Belt. This developmental momentum is not a simple addition of cities or a stacking of resources, but is achieved through systemic optimization and synergetic action. At the same time, the concept of "acting in light of local conditions" is integrated; for instance, in the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin, the development model of the Yangtze River Economic Belt was not mechanically copied, in order to reflect regional characteristics. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Why do we not call it the Yellow River Economic Belt? The resource endowments and developmental conditions of the provinces and regions in the Yellow River Basin vary greatly; it is not a single economic belt. However, there is consistency in the Great Protection of the Yellow River ^[23]. Meanwhile, the basin has profound historical and cultural foundations, with a culture that is diverse yet integrated, and a very clear developmental lineage."

Second, innovate "internal" coordination mechanisms. On one hand, the interior of a region must also keep pace with the development of new quality productive forces and promote the transformation and upgrading of traditional industrial structures. New quality productive forces include not only emerging industries but also the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries. Strategic and future industries, characterized by high technology content, high added value, and high growth potential, are important forces for promoting coordinated regional development. Local governments can cultivate them gradually based on actual conditions to accelerate the formation of new quality productive forces. At the same time, emphasis should be placed on promoting the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, starting from a certain aspect or field and utilizing technological and managerial innovation to improve their competitiveness and added value, thereby achieving synergetic development with new quality productive forces. Through the Marxist systemic view, we should promote the coordinated co-governance of the government, the market, and society to form a synergy for social governance.

In the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized not only that its development differs from the "Yangtze River Economic Belt," but also the importance of internal coordination, fully considering the differences between the upper, middle, and lower reaches. The interior also requires a systemic layout and synergetic coordination. Wherever General Secretary Xi Jinping visits, he makes targeted deployments and requirements: in areas such as Sanjiangyuan and the Qilian Mountains, he requires the "creation of more ecological products"; in the "U-turn" ^[24] of the Yellow River, he emphasizes "vigorously developing modern high-efficiency agriculture and water-saving industries"; at the mouth of the Yellow River, he encourages "tapping the potential for the development and utilization of saline-alkali land," and stresses that we "must start from reality—wherever there is water, utilize water; wherever there are mountains, utilize mountains; where it is suitable for grain, grow grain; where it is suitable for farming, farm; where it is suitable for industry, do industry; and where it is suitable for commerce, do commerce—actively exploring new paths for high-quality development that are rich in regional characteristics." On the other hand, in accordance with the New Development Philosophy and the requirements of high-quality development, and to meet the "qualitative" requirements of new quality productive forces, systems and mechanisms must perfect the coordinated development of the economy, society, and the environment within their internal structures. If one only focuses on environmental protection while ignoring economic development and social progress, or only pursues economic growth while ignoring environmental protection and social equity, it may lead to an imbalance in overall development. In recent years, an increasing number of countries and regions have begun to emphasize the assessment and application of "Green GDP." For example, Jiangsu Province has formally incorporated "Green GDP" into its official evaluation system, assessing the green development levels of local governments through methods such as hundred-point scoring and the completion of binding indicators. This practical exploration provides useful experience and a reference for the promotion and application of Green GDP.

4. Adhere to the principle of dynamic development, perfect systems and mechanisms for future industries, and ensure the depth of development

The dynamic principle of the Marxist systemic view holds that a system is not static but is in a state of constant motion and change. Any system is inextricably linked to its external environment and changes over time. Therefore, we must grasp the objective laws of universal connection between things and conduct analysis and understanding through the lens of a system's dynamic nature. Proactive emerging industries possess significant strategic leadership, disruptiveness, and uncertainty; they represent the direction of future industrial development and are of great significance for promoting high-quality economic development and enhancing national competitiveness. China's new quality productive forces are continuously developing, and regional pilots have achieved phased success, accumulating valuable experience. For example, Guizhou, as the first National Big Data Comprehensive Pilot Zone, has seen the proportion of its digital economy in its GDP increase from 19.7% in 2016 to 39.1% in 2022, thanks to strong policy and institutional support. Guizhou has launched innovative mechanisms such as "computing power dispatch platforms" and "computing power vouchers" to promote the deep integration of the digital economy and the real economy. Therefore, whether considering the laws of the dynamic development of productive forces and new quality productive forces themselves, the cyclical nature of technological iteration, or the structural connotations and practical experiences of high-quality development in light of local conditions, we need to deploy the development of new quality productive forces with a more long-term and broad vision, proactively cultivating and strengthening future industries.

One key focus is the establishment of a mechanism for increasing investment in future industries. The Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization (hereinafter referred to as the Decision), adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, pointed out the need to "strengthen innovation in key generic technologies, frontier leading technologies, modern engineering technologies, and disruptive technologies; reinforce institutional supply for new fields and new arenas; and establish a mechanism for increasing investment in future industries." The Implementation Plan for Leading the Standardization of New Industries (2023–2035), released in early 2024, focuses on eight emerging industrial sectors and nine future industrial sectors. In emerging industries, the construction of investment and financing structures is relatively smooth. In contrast, future industrial fields—such as the metaverse, brain-computer interfaces, quantum technology, humanoid robotics, generative AI, bio-manufacturing, next-generation display technology, future network technology, and new types of energy storage—still face significant challenges because their technologies are still in the frontier R&D and exploration stages. Furthermore, their business models have not yet formed. This requires policy guidance: specifically, the further clarification of industrial development directions, the formulation of scientific development plans, the optimization of the industrial environment, the promotion of business model innovation, the strengthening of technological innovation and talent cultivation, and an emphasis on brand building, market expansion, risk management, and social responsibility. These measures will effectively promote the healthy development of future industries.

Additionally, because future industries require large capital investments, we can focus on key directions such as future materials, future energy, future biology, future health, future displays, and future aviation. We should explore the establishment of future industry funds, using fiscal funds to leverage social capital investment. Establishing a mechanism for increasing investment in future industries requires the joint efforts of the government, social capital, scientific research institutions, and enterprises to form a synergy. We should strengthen the institutional supply for new fields and new arenas, and build an adaptive regulatory system for new industries, new formats, and new models that is both inclusive and prudent. Policy support and protection should be given to the new formats, technologies, and models provided by entrepreneurial enterprises. We should promote the shift in cultivating future industries from "providing policies" and "providing projects" to "providing scenarios" and "providing opportunities," forming a long-term mechanism for multi-party participation in scenario construction with intrinsic driving force.

The second key focus is to grow and develop "patient capital." On April 30, 2024, a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee mentioned "patient capital" for the first time, emphasizing the need to "develop new quality productive forces according to local conditions, actively develop venture capital, and grow patient capital." The Decision also mentions "patient capital." In a socialist market economy, capital plays a role as a key factor of production. Regulating and guiding it is not only a major economic and political issue but also an important subject at both the practical and theoretical levels, as it relates directly to upholding the foundation of the basic socialist economic system.

The Decision innovatively introduced the concept of "patient capital," which transcends the boundaries of ownership, domestic versus foreign origin, and specific forms of capital. It represents a new form of capital that conforms to the developmental trends of advanced productive forces. The core characteristic of "patient capital" is that it does not take the maximization of short-term interests as its primary pursuit; rather, it is committed to long-term project investment and has a strong capacity to withstand risk. In short, it advocates a philosophy that looks to the long term and focuses on value investment, adhering to long-term input and valuing long-term returns. Compared to strategic emerging industries, future industries are in the early stages of the industrial life cycle, characterized by great uncertainty and long cultivation periods. Patient capital will broaden the growth space for the sustained development of new quality productive forces, helping emerging industries thrive and aiding the construction of future industries. It injects stable financial momentum and plays a key role as an "accelerator" in the development of new quality productive forces. In addition to national fiscal support, it can provide long-term stable funding for investment projects and capital markets. It is a key element for guaranteeing scientific and industrial innovation and is an important condition and driving force for developing new quality productive forces. Growing patient capital is a multifaceted and comprehensive task involving policy guidance, market mechanism reform, investor education, and capital market development. The government needs to issue further policies to clarify the definition, role, and development plan of patient capital, and establish diversified incentive mechanisms, financial service support, and regulatory systems. On one hand, we must reform market mechanisms and standardize registration and exit mechanisms; on the other hand, we must strengthen investor education and enhance the professional capabilities of investment institutions, improving their judgment and risk management regarding investments in the field of new quality productive forces. Ultimately, it will lead various frontier productive factors to converge in the development of new quality productive forces, achieving a significant improvement in total factor productivity.