Grant fraud and other academic offences threaten China’s innovation push, state media says

China should upgrade its punishment for academic misconduct, a chronic problem threatening the nation’s innovation push, according to an opinion piece in People’s Daily, the mouthpiece of the Communist Party.

The article published on Monday said that despite efforts to strengthen research integrity, misconduct was still frequent, in part because of weak penalties.

Such violations “waste scarce research resources, undermine a fair and competitive research environment, shake the foundations of technological innovation, and damage the international reputation of China’s scientific community”, the article said.

It argued that academic dishonesty could only effectively be deterred by significantly increasing punishment.

The call comes as China accelerates its hi-tech drive, prioritising technological self-sufficiency and innovation in response to its escalating technological competition with the United States.

  

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