Visitors interact with an intelligent robot at an industrial exhibition in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, in May. [Photo by Long Wei/For China Daily]

Zhejiang, an eastern coastal province in China, is banking on the digital economy, powered by Alibaba and a host of small-and medium-sized enterprises, to reach 4 trillion yuan ($588.23 billion) by 2022 and account for more than 55 percent of its gross domestic product, officials said.

During the past three years, significant strides have been made in digitalization, thanks to the growth of the digital economy.

The province's digital economy surged 15.1 percent year-on-year during the first quarter. Its digital economy totaled 2.33 trillion yuan last year, accounting for 41.5 percent of the local economy.

"The development of the digital economy is a major driving force for both economic reform and social reform. This is why the government has given priority to building the digital economy," said Yuan Jiajun, governor of Zhejiang province, at a recent news conference in Beijing.

He said that to build the digital economy, the province had established three zones and three centers. The digital industrial zone incubates new business models and distinctive towns, such as the Yunqi Cloud Town in Hangzhou. The industry digitization zone mainly increases the production efficiency of traditional industries through digital transformation. Internet Plus, Robot Plus, and Big Data Plus platforms empower traditional industries.

According to Yuan, through process optimization and technology advancement, industries can save tens of millions of yuan of costs. Zhejiang's industrial labor productivity per person above a designated size increased from 167,800 yuan in 2013 to 225,000 yuan in 2018.

The third zone is the digital economy innovative coordination zone, where the government gives favorable policies to talents and advanced technologies. "While 5G technology is gaining momentum, the government of Zhejiang has attached great importance to the development of 5G networks. The capital city of Hangzhou was selected as one of the first pilot cities for 5G networks in China."

In terms of the three centers, Yuan noted that the digital innovation center boosts the marketization of the digital economy, the trade center facilitates cross-border e-commerce, while the financial center promotes the integration of the digital economy and the traditional finance industry.