Guangdong puts new emphasis on digital industry

Guangdong province, the largest provincial-level economy in the country, aims to promote the digitalized restructuring of 50,000 manufacturing enterprises by 2025.

It will also encourage the use of cloud computing by 1 million enterprises to boost efficiency. The plan was released on July 6.

The goal is to achieve a digital transformation to improve quality and efficiency, said Tu Gaokun, director of the province's department of industry and information technology, at a news conference on July 9 in Guangzhou.

The plan will be implemented in leading enterprises, small and medium-sized enterprises, industrial parks and industrial chains.

It focuses on digitalization in each of its 10 strategic pillar industries and 10 strategic new industries. For example, the new-generation electronic information industry will take the lead in developing and applying new industrial software. Green petrochemical industrial clusters, located in Guangzhou, Huizhou, Zhanjiang, Maoming and Jieyang, will receive support in building digitalized parks and plants.

To facilitate the digital transformation, the software and hardware sectors, industrial internet platforms, digital infrastructure and digital security systems will be strengthened, Tu said.

By 2023, about 500 service providers for the digital transformation in manufacturing will be part of the program, with five national-level cross-sector industrial internet platforms and 20 specialized industrial internet platforms to be formed.

The integration of 5G technology and an industrial internet will be enhanced, Tu said.