The Report on the Work of the Government 2024 proposes to coordinate the construction of a strong education, science and technology, and talent-oriented country, deploying and implementing the integration of innovation chains, industry chains, funding chains, and talent chains. This involves deepening comprehensive reforms in education, science, and technology talent to provide strong impetus for modernization construction.

Yu Miaojie, President of Liaoning University, has stated in an interview that being at the intersection of education, science, and talent, universities bear the mission of assisting the development of new productive forces and have unique advantages in doing so. Universities in the Northeast region especially  should focus on the major strategic needs of writing a new chapter of comprehensive revitalization, and deeply consider how to answer the new proposition of ‘forging new productive forces, what universities should do’.

‘What to do’ and ‘how to do it’ are the two basic issues which need to be understood in relation to the development of new quality productive forces in university services. Representative Yu Miaojie explained that what universities need to do is comprehend the two key elements of talent and technological innovation firmly, as well as empowering the forging of new quality productive forces.

Disciplines are the leading force in the development of universities, and they are also a prerequisite for nurturing new quality productive forces in universities. Yu Miaojie stated that the level of discipline construction determines the direction and potential of universities to serve new quality productive forces. To achieve the goal of industrial structure adjustment there should be focus on renovating and upgrading the time-honored brands, deep development of the well-known brands and the strengthening the start-up brands. There should also be focus on the practical needs of supplementing, extending, and upgrading the industrial chain, and on adjusting and optimizing the disciplinary layout in a targeted manner to enrich the soil for the development of new productive forces.

Liaoning University has a complete range of disciplines, which can fully meet the needs of industrial transformation and upgrading as well as industrial chain layout in Northeast China, thus better adapting to the development needs of new quality productivity in Northeast China. Especially as one of the ‘Double First Class’ universities, Liaoning University focuses on serving the national major strategy and high-quality development of the regional economy to condense its disciplinary direction. It also strives to build high-end think tank platforms such as the China Economic Research Institute and the New Structural Economics Research Center, shaping the vitality of the economy of northeastern part of China.

The core of new quality productivity lies in the improvement of total factor productivity, namely technological advancement and technological innovation. Yu Miaojie said that from the perspective of basic research, universities need to continuously enhance their original innovation capabilities, vigorously promote organized scientific research, strengthen scientific and technological innovation, especially original and disruptive technological innovation, to actively assist high-level technological self-reliance and self-improvement. The development of new quality productive forces should focus on strengthening production, academia, research and application, and improve industrial technology level and additional value of a product by promoting sustained and intensive technological progress. Liaoning University persists in the orientation of real problems, continuously striving to improve the level of innovation platforms and enhance innovation foundation capabilities, as well as actively creating a source of technological innovation. Focus is on deepening the fosterage of major basic research projects and other key projects, and on solving major, prominent, and critical problems in the construction of a modern industrial system with Northeast China characteristics.

Universities are not only high grounds of innovation, but also gathering places of talent. Yu Miaojie stated that the first step is to effectively enhance the ability of training people for professions and thus achieve an effective supply of talents. There should be focus on industrial structure and development needs, continuously optimizing professional layout, continuously improving the matching degree between talent supply and enterprise demand, to cultivate more professional talents urgently needed for the development of new quality productivity. Also, there is a need to vigorously strengthen the selection and cultivation of top innovative talents in basic disciplines and support graduate students to participate in major scientific research tasks, and to  foster more innovative talents to strengthen the reserve of strategic scientific and technological talents in key fields. Additionally, it is necessary to effectively leverage the role of talent aggregation and achieve high-quality supply of talents. Activating talent resources requires joint efforts from the government and universities. From the perspective of the government, it is necessary to rationalize the institutional mechanisms for attracting talents to work in Northeast China, and to encourage and support college graduates and high-end talents to revitalize Northeast China through prefunding and special funding. The relevant systems and regulations should be improved and perfected. Talents who intend to work in Northeast China shall not be deliberately obstructed or detained in any form. Attracting and making talents settle down through favorable tax treatment and other policies, unleashes  a new dividend in improving population quality. From the perspective of universities, they should make good use of policies and take the opportunities to vigorously strengthen the high-end talent pool. Both sides work together to promote the full circulation of talent elements and provide a source of development for new quality productive forces with fresh blood of talent from time to time.

Yu Miaojie noted that Liaoning University adheres to the combination of attracting and cultivating talents. It has attracted many senior scholars in professional fields and outstanding young talents from home and abroad to gather at Liaoning University. At the same time, it has explored the potential in depth within the university, and a group of outstanding talents led by CAE Member and members of the International Economic Association gathered in Liaoning University, settled down in the Northeast China, and enabled Northeast China to revitalize. When talking about further strengthening the role of the talent pool, Yu Miaojie stated that Liaoning University will continue to promote the strategy of building a strong university with talents and improving the guarantee mechanism for talent services. Liaoning University will make every effort to build an innovation platform and a new attractive area for professionals’ development, thus providing robust talent support for the development of new quality productivity.