Tech focus helps Guizhou lead with high-quality growth

Province using big data across all sectors of industry, investing in digital economy, Li Xin reports.

During the 70 years since the founding of the People's Republic of China, Guizhou province has achieved unprecedented progress in its high-quality development since the launch of its big data initiative in 2013, especially in the tech field, said local officials.

Statistics from the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology show that the digital economy accounted for 26.9 percent of provincial GDP in 2018.

The digital economy had a growth rate of 24.6 percent year-on-year in 2018, ranking first in China for four consecutive years.

The employment growth rate in the province's digital industry has ranked first nationwide for two years.

To develop the big data industry into a world-leading ecosystem, Guizhou prioritizes the inclusion of big data into all aspects of life.

The province adheres to supply-side structural reform and has intensified support for big data enterprises to attract investment.

A number of big names such as Alibaba, Huawei, Tencent, Baidu and JD have settled in Guizhou. They sit alongside international behemoths like Apple, Microsoft, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Intel and Oracle.

Last year, the province constructed 102 big data benchmark projects, 1,050 demonstration projects and helped in the integration of 1,625 enterprises.

This indicates that applying big data into the real economy has accelerated to the intermediate stage, officials said. Guizhou is building "digital villages" and promoting the application of modern information technology.

Big data, for example, is being applied to rural production management services to accelerate digitization and intelligence in the region.

All villages in the province have achieved 100 percent optical fiber broadband and 4G coverage. This has passed the target set by the State two years ahead of time.

The province has also established a platform for the production and marketing of agricultural products.

More than 70 county-level e-commerce operation service centers were set up together with 10,250 village-level e-commerce service sites, which cover all township logistics in the province.

This solved the problem of "small farmers and big markets" and realized the maxims of "Guizhou goods out of the mountains" and "agricultural goods into the city".

Guizhou provincial government has taken a people-centered development approach, making use of big data to promote safety and improve people's livelihoods.

It focuses on promoting equality and improving the efficiency of public services.

Currently, 83.1 percent of the provincial government affairs can be handled online.

It has ranked among the top three nationally in terms of e-governance for three consecutive years.

Guiyang, capital of Guizhou, has applied big data into the real economy as a powerful force for industrial transformation and development.

In the medical industry, Guiyang Longmaster Information Technology participated in the establishment of the 39 Internet Hospital.

It became the first internet hospital fully certified as a medical institution.

The company offers technologies such as mobile terminals and internet connection related to telemedicine, a system where diagnoses and treatment can be carried out remotely, to people in areas with poor medical and health facilities.

"Over the past two years, a lot of patients have enjoyed the medical service from specialists in large city hospitals through consultations, remote rounds, remote instruction and field operations, which is beneficial to both doctors and patients," said Director Pi Shengming of the Sixth Hospital of Guiyang.

"The ultimate goal of setting up a telemedicine platform in Guizhou is to take advantage of big data to allow to people get good medical services on their doorstep and obtain real benefits," said Deputy Director An Shihai of the Guizhou Provincial Health Commission.

The technologies have benefited thousands of patients from 24 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions by 2018.

The telemedicine model makes more efficient use of quality medical resources, improving primary healthcare institutions, say officials. Guizhou is China's first national big data comprehensive pilot area.

Its mission is to accumulate practical experience for China's big data strategy.

In the past few years, Guizhou has advanced and explored all things big data, and has been recognized by the national government and society for its achievements.