Tongji University releases index to measure innovation in move to spur Chinese entrepreneurship

The university launches the world's first index reflecting the status of innovation, entrepreneurship and venture finance in China

SHANGHAI, May 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- On the morning of May 20, the press conference announcing the world's first index to measure innovation, entrepreneurship and venture financing was held at Tongji University. The index was created by the Research Center of Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Venture Financing, which was jointly founded by the School of Economics and Management, Tongji University, the Advanced Institute of Business Research and CDF-Capital.

The new index, formally named the Index of Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Venture Financing, is based on four primary indicators - external environment or macroeconomic fundamentals, the investment into resources, the capabilities of the existing industries and companies, and the comprehensive benefits, and focuses on an analysis of several factors, including the policy and system environment and the regional economic base.

The index identifies three important economic growth poles based on geographical distribution - Beijing and Tianjin as the primary area of growth, the Yangtze River Economic Belt and the Guangdong region. Results show that the significant economic benefits of the country's most developed regions attract capital investment. Developing and remote regions can't attract enough talent or capital, leading to a low level of innovation, entrepreneurship and venture financing as indicated by the index.

Private enterprise is the source and driver of innovation. In order to enhance the ability at innovation within the private sector, the government needs to first make available flexible and transparent policies and systems that foster a positive environment for market-oriented economic development. Secondly, the government would be advised to then combine an industry-by-industry upgrade with emerging technologies including AI to truly transform the industrial landscape. Finally, the overall industrial mix needs to be assessed and re-evaluated, with a focus on choosing, building and directing attention only on the sectors that bring the most meaningful value to a region, rather than create and maintain an all-inclusive industry portfolio.