On August 24, 2024, the Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission of China, joined by 9 other national ministries, issued the Implementing Guidelines on the Coordination of Digital and Green Transition and Development (hereinafter referred to as “the Guidelines”). The purpose is to provide better guidance to national departments, local governments, social organizations, and enterprises to carry out a coordinated development in the development of digital and green transition.

This 76-page document contains four chapters and one annex. The overall planning for improving the coordination of China’s green and digital transition and development has been summarized as a “three-two-three” principle, in which:

·         Three kinds of stakeholders for implementation: governments and regulating departments on regional level, sector organizations like associations and research institutes etc., and enterprises.

·         Two main directions for improvements: accelerating green and low-carbon development of digital sectors; fully give play to the enterprises in regards of innovation to accelerate the green transition of 9 key sectors.

·         Improve a development that integrates innovation from three perspective:  fully planning for improving basic capabilities, construct integrated technical system, and actively optimize integrated industrial system.

The Guidelines provides a diagram for the overall layout for the key contents of the document as below:

It also specifies the key roles of the three stakeholders as below:

·         Governments and regulating departments on regional level shall formulate and deploy relevant policies, and promote the work in a coordinated manner. Governments and relevant departments at municipal level carry out practical work in accordance with local conditions.

·         Sector associations, research institutions and relevant universities shall actively coordinate and strengthen industry-university-research cooperation, increase technological research and innovation, accelerate the transformation of results and industrial cultivation.

·         Enterprises in relevant sectors shall clarify the demand for dual-oriented collaborative technology innovation, industrial investment and development direction, promote the green transition through digital technology, and effectively improve the digital green development level of enterprises.

For foreign stakeholders, this horizontal policy is of considerable significance, as its detailed content outlines many specific targets, developmental goals, or focus areas in key sectors. It is recommended to review the specific content related to corresponding sectors to stay informed about the country’s strategic direction. Furthermore, the annex to the Guidelines offers a comprehensive list of national standards directly related to the goals established in the Guidelines. These standards are considered crucial as supportive technical specifications for reaching the ultimate objective: the coordination of China’s green and digital transitions. The annex serves as a practical guide for enterprises to comprehend the criteria governing China’s green and digital transition coordination, and provides valuable insight into the development of the standard system in this domain. It also indicates the status of the standards listed (e.g., under development, published, or under review).

If you need more information or have any question on the topic, please reach us at: contact@bestao-consulting.com .