In-person event

With its remarkable economic success, China could be regarded by countries in the Global South as presenting a development model that is easier to emulate than that of Western developed countries. In this paper, we examine to what extent the Chinese model, which China calls “Socialism with Chinese Characteristics,” could be regarded as a universal truth for the Global South. We start with two key features of the Chinese model: its export-oriented growth model, which reversed its import-substitution model that communist China practiced in the first 30 years under Mao, and can still be found in many developing countries; and its extensive use of industrial policy that relies heavily on state-owned enterprises and government subsidies, in contrast to the more market-oriented model in Western countries.

In addition, we discuss two new areas of development that illustrate the complexity and adaptability of China’s heterodox approach to development: the phenomenal growth of its e-commerce sector, despite its longstanding censorship regime; and its sustainable development policies, as illustrated with its recent experience in climate adaptation and energy transition. We conclude by discussing how the Chinese approach, which combines a variety of seemingly irreconcilable approaches, reflects another major feature: experimental pragmatism, and what lessons it might offer to countries in the Global South.

Speaker

• Professor Henry Gao, Singapore Management University

Chair

David S G Goodman is Director of the China Studies Centre, University of Sydney, where he is Professor of Chinese Politics. He is also a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia. Recent publications include: Local Governance in China: Structures, variations, and innovations Elgar 2023 (with Ceren Ergenc); Class and the Communist Party of China, 1921-2021 (2 Vols) (with Marc Blecher, Yingjie Guo, Jean-Louis Rocca, Tony Saich, and Beibei Tang) Routledge, 2022.

Thursday 22 February

Time: 1-2pm

CPD Points: 1

Venue: Common Room, Level 4, New Law Building (F10)