East China's Shandong province ramps up efforts to promote the ecological conservation and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin. [Photo/iqilu.com]

East China's Shandong province will continue to expedite the replacement of old growth drivers with new ones, aiming to achieve high-quality development in the new year, said the province's top official at a conference held on Feb 18 following the end of the Chinese New Year holiday.

Shandong will further implement its new development philosophy this year, as well as bolster efforts to cultivate 10 characteristic and modern industrial clusters, the top official said.

Over the past few years, Shandong has withstood the tests of economic transition and the profound changes in the world, continuing to display its vigorous momentum. The province has witnessed a constant improvement in the quality and effect of development in areas like rural revitalization, scientific and technological innovation, reform and opening-up, environmental protection, as well as improving people's livelihoods.

This year marks the beginning of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) for economic and social development, as well as the start of the country's new journey towards fully building a modern socialist country. 

This year, Shandong will nurture new drivers and advantages for high-quality development, as well as advance the modernization of industrial chains.

Efforts will also be made to promote the ecological conservation and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin, aiming to build Shandong into a green and ecological corridor in the basin.

The province will give priority to advancing scientific and technological innovation this year by using new technologies, including the industrial internet.