CHAPTER I GENERAL PROVISIONS CHAPTER II SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN ECONOMIC CONSTRUCTION AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER III HIGH-TECH RESEARCH AND HIGH-TECH INDUSTRIES CHAPTER IV BASIC RESEARCH AND APPLIED BASIC RESEARCH CHAPTER V RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTIONS CHAPTER VI SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL WORKERS CHAPTER VII MEASURES TO GUARANTEE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY PROGRESS CHAPTER VIII SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AWARDS CHAPTER IX LEGAL LIABILITY CHAPTER X SUPPLEMENTARY PROVISIONS

Article 1 This Law is formulated in accordance with the Constitution with a view to promoting science and technology progress, assigning priority to the development of science and technology and bringing the role of science and technology as the primary productive force into full play in socialist modernization drive, so as to improve the service of science and technology to economic construction.

Article 2 The State practises a basic guideline of basing economic construction and social development on science and technology and orienting science and technology undertakings to economic construction and social development.

Article 3 The State shall protect the freedom of scientific research, encourage scientific exploration and technological innovation so as to raise its science and technology to an advanced level in the world.

The State and the whole society shall respect knowledge, esteem talent, value the creative work of scientific and technological personnel, and protect intellectual property rights.

Article 4 The State shall, in compliance with the demands of scientific and technological progress and the socialist market economy, restructure and improve science and technology system, and establish a mechanism capable of effectively integrating science and technology with economy.

Article 5 The State shall encourage scientific research and technology development, popularize and apply the achievements made in science and technology, transform traditional industries, develop high-tech industries, and enhance activities employing science and technology to serve economic construction and social development.

Article 6 The State shall disseminate scientific and technological knowledge to raise the scientific and cultural level of all the citizens.

The State shall encourage government organs, enterprises, institutions, social organizations and citizens to participate in and support activities aimed at science and technology progress.

Article 7 The State Council shall formulate science and technology development programmes, determine major science and technology projects and other major projects closely related to science and technology, and secure the coordination of science and technology progress with economic construction and social development.

Opinions from scientific and technological workers shall be fully solicited in the course of formulating science and technology development programmes and important policies and determining major science and technology projects and major projects closely related to science and technology, and a principle of scientific decision-making process shall be followed.

Article 8 The administrative department in charge of science and technology under the State Council shall be responsible for the macroscopic management and overall coordination of the nation-wide science and technology work. Other administrative departments concerned under the State Council shall be responsible for the relevant science and technology progress work within the scope of their functions and responsibilities as prescribed by the state council.

Local people's governments at various levels shall adopt effective measures to promote science and technology progress.

The State shall render assistance to minority nationality regions and remote and poor areas to accelerate the development of science and technology thereof.

Article 9 The Government of the People's Republic of China shall actively promote science and technology cooperation and exchanges with foreign governments and international organizations, encourage research and development agencies, institutions of higher learning, social organizations and scientific and technical workers to establish cooperative relations of various forms with foreign science and technology circles.

CHAPTER II SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN ECONOMIC CONSTRUCTION AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Article 10 The State shall encourage research and development of new technologies, new products, new materials and new techniques, and promote activities of advancing rationalization proposals, and enhancing technological innovation and technical collaboration so as to steadily improve product quality, labour productivity and economic returns, and develop thereby social productive forces.

Article 11 The State shall select projects of vital significance to economic construction and sponsor related scientific research and technological development so as to accelerate the popularization and application of scientific and technological achievements in the production.

Article 12 The State shall establish and develop technology market to promote the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements. Technology trading activities shall be conducted in accordance with the principles of free will, equality, mutual benefit, compensated transaction , honesty and credibility.

Article 13 The State shall rely on scientific and technological progress to advance economic construction and social development, control population growth, enhance population quality, rationally develop and utilize resources, defense against natural calamities, and protect living conditions and ecological environment.

Article 14 The State shall rely on scientific and technological progress to vitalize rural economy, promote the popularization and application of agricultural scientific and technological achievements, and develop a modern agriculture of high yield high quality, and high efficiency.

Article 15 Local people's governments at or above the county level shall adopt measures to ensure that agricultural science and technology research and development organizations as well as demonstration and dissemination bodies shall have the right of independent management and use of their experimental bases and means of production in research, development, testing and popularization of new varieties and new technologies in agriculture.

The application and popularization of agricultural scientific and technological achievements shall be a service gratis or non-gratis in compliance with relevant laws and regulations.

Article 16 Local people's governments at various levels shall encourage and support the development of mass science and technology organizations in rural areas, and render socialized scientific and technical services to plantation, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery before, during and after their production in a comprehensive and systematic way.

Article 17 The State shall rely on scientific and technological progress to develop industry, communications and transportation, post and telecommunications, geological prospecting, construction and installation, commerce and other trades, so as to enhance their economic results and social benefit.

Article 18 The State shall encourage enterprises to establish and improve their technology development organizations, and also encourage them to join forces or cooperate with research and development institutes, and institutions of higher learning, with a view to increasing their capabilities in research and development, pilot trial, and industrial test.

Article 19 Enterprises shall, in response to the demands of international and domestic markets, carry out technological transformation and equipment renewal, upgrade their scientific management level and assimilate and develop new technology so as to strengthen their market competitiveness.

Enterprises shall seek consultation and assessment services and implement industrial and technological policies of the State when engaged in technological transformation and importation of advanced foreign technology and equipment.

Enterprises which apply new techniques to develop and produce new products may enjoy preferential treatment in accordance with the provisions of the State.

Article 20 The State shall rely on scientific and technological progress to develop the national defense science and technology, speed up the modernization of national defense and strengthen the national defense capabilities.

Article 21 The State shall encourage the application of advanced science and technology to promote the development of education, culture, public health, sports and other undertakings.

CHAPTER III HIGH-TECH RESEARCH AND HIGH-TECH INDUSTRIES

Article 22 The State shall promote research on high technology and bring into play the leading role of high technology in scientific and technological progress; the State shall foster and promote the formation and development of high-tech industries, and apply high technology to transform traditional industries, and bring into play the role of the high-tech industries in economic construction.

Article 23 The administrative department in charge of science and technology under the State Council and other relevant administrative departments shall organize in the whole nation scientific and technological forces to carry out research on high technology and popularize the achievements thereof.

Article 24 High and new technology industrial development zones shall be established upon approval by the State Council in selected areas with appropriate conditions.

Article 25 Preferential policies stipulated by the State shall be applied to the enterprises and the research and development institutions engaged in the development and production of high-tech products within and without the high and new technology industrial zones, and the specific measures shall be formulated by the State Council.

Article 26 The State shall encourage and guide the enterprises engaged in development, production and transaction of high-tech products to establish management systems in conformity with international norms, produce high-tech products up to international standards, and participate in global market competition so as to advance the internationalization of high-tech industries.

CHAPTER IV BASIC RESEARCH AND APPLIED BASIC RESEARCH

Article 27 The State shall ensure the continuous and steady development of basic research and applied basic research, and consolidate the foundation for scientific and technological progress.

Funds for basic research and applied basic research shall account for an appropriate proportion in the total funds for research and development.

Article 28 The administrative department in charge of science and technology under the State Council shall organize in a planned manner the implementation of major basic scientific research programmes in the frontier disciplines and in economic and social development.

Research and development entities, institutions of higher learning, other enterprises and institutions as well as citizens may select subjects on their own for basic research and applied basic research.

Article 29 The State shall establish a Natural Science Fund to aid basic research and applied basic research in accordance with the principle of supporting only those with eligibility on the basis of appraisal and deliberation by experts.

The State shall support scientific research activities conducted by outstanding youths, and establish a Science Fund for Youths within the Natural Science Fund.

Article 30 The State shall support the build-up of key laboratories, and set up bases for basic research and applied basic research.

The State-level key laboratories are open to both domestic and foreign researchers.