Taicang, a county-level city in East China's Jiangsu province, was recently included in a national program that involves building cities with high intellectual property competitiveness. 

The city has in recent years been making concerted efforts to create a conducive environment to intensify the protection of intellectual property rights. 

For example, authorities have rolled out a series of preferential policies, including providing support in terms of funding, to encourage enterprises to pursue innovation. 

Taicang has held innovation and venture contests to attract more high-caliber talents to advance innovation in the city. 

A total of 6,280 valid invention patents, including 1,294 high-value ones, were registered in Taicang in the first half of this year. There are presently 74.85 invention patents for every 10,000 residents in the city, with the ratio for high-value ones being 15.42. 

Twenty-one enterprises from Taicang have been honored as national models in intellectual property development, and five patents from the city have won the China Patent Award, the only governmental award in China to reward inventions and creations with patent rights. 

Taicang is currently one of most vibrant innovation hubs in China. It was ranked among the top 100 counties (districts) nationwide in terms of scientific and technological innovation in 2021.