863 Program
Chinese technology program From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 863 program (Chinese: 863计划) or State High-Tech Development Plan (Chinese: 国家高技术研究发展计划) was a program funded and administered by the government of the People's Republic of China intended to stimulate the development of advanced technologies in a wide range of fields for the purpose of rendering China independent of financial obligations for foreign technologies.[1] It was inspired by the Strategic Defense Initiative proposed by U.S. President Ronald Reagan in 1983, and was absorbed alongside Program 973 into the "National Key R&D Program" in 2016.[2][3][4]
On March 3, 1986, the program was suggested by Wang Daheng, Wang Ganchang, Yang Jiachi, and Chen Fangyun in a letter to China's paramount leader Deng Xiaoping, who approved the program within 2 days.[5][6] The program was initially led by Zhao Ziyang, who was the Premier of China at the time, and received a governmental fund of 10 billion RMB in 1986, which accounts for 5% of the total government spending that year.[3][6][7] According to the US National Counterintelligence and Security Center, the 863 program "provides funding and guidance for efforts to clandestinely acquire US technology and sensitive economic information."[8]
Among the products known to have resulted from the 863 program are the Loongson computer processor family (originally named Godson), the Tianhe supercomputers and the Shenzhou spacecraft.[9][10]
History
Named after its date of establishment (March 1986, 86/3 by the Chinese date format), the 863 Program was proposed in a letter to the Chinese government by scientists Wang Daheng, Wang Ganchang, Yang Jiachi, and Chen Fangyun and endorsed by Deng Xiaoping.[11] After its implementation during the Seventh Five-Year Plan, the program continued to operate through the two five-year plans that followed, with state financing of around 11 billion RMB and an output of around 2000 patents (national and international).[12]
In 2001, under the Tenth Five-Year Plan, the program was reevaluated in consultation with foreign experts. The result was a widened focus to strengthen the competitiveness of China in the global economy.[13] The evaluation practice has been included into the program as a project management system.[13]
In a 2011 court case, Chinese-born scientist Huang Kexue was found guilty of stealing commercial secrets from US-based corporations and passing at least some of this information to the 863 program.[14]
Outline
The program initially focused on seven key technological fields:[15]
Since 1986, two more fields have been brought under the umbrella of the program:
- Telecommunications (1992)
- Marine technology (1996)
See also
References
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