Fubing Su, Associate Professor, Political Science, Vassar College
China's dramatic growth in the past thirty years has reenergized a debate about development strategies for industrializing countries. Some policy analysts believe that the "made-in-China" Beijing Consensus offers an alternative model to the West. China has indeed followed a path that resembled the East Asian developmental state model. What distinguishes the China Model from other countries, however, is its strong dynamism at the local level. Chinese local governments exhibited an insatiable appetite for growth and investment, especially export-oriented manufactures. The competitive pressure resulted in over-investment, wasteful land taking, and poor labor and environment standards. Any evaluation of China's past experience and the projection of its future need to take into consideration of this dimension.
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