In January 2006, the State Council issued the National Guideline on Medium- and Long-Term Program for Science and Technology Development (2006-20). It aims for R&D development expenditure of 2.5 percent of GDP and a 60 percent contribution of science and technology to national development by 2020. The country's reliance on foreign technology will be brought down to 30 percent and below over the same period. The aim is also that the number of patents granted to Chinese nationals and their academic essays will rank among the top five in the world.

The general objective of China's scientific and technological development by 2020 is to strengthen innovation, basic research and advanced technologies and thereby provides a solid basis for China to become a strong country in science and technology by the middle of this century.