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China calling

Mamun Rashid
***The development policy of the Chinese gGoLernment is to transform the economy from its agricultural base to athen industrial base, and to improve the standard of living of the people. To fulfill this objective, tChinesehe gGovernment is working to enhance the earnings and education levels of the farmers so that they become motivated to migrate to towns.***
SOME of my readers may wonder why I have decided to write on China, sitting here in Bangladesh with enough of our own problems to spend time on. Well, sometimes it pays off to look at other countries" experiences for possible sleadolution to one"s own issues.
China is a wonder of modem economic history. While the USA is on the verge of recession and its currency value is on a slippery slide, it is looking at China (and the Middle-Eastern countries) to stabilisze/rescue its currency and its economy.
Once perceived to be the maker of Icheapow quality products for poor people, China is now a formidable economic super-power. The global pendulum has swung in favour of China. I hope my readers will not blame mye choosing China as a case for lessons we can learn to benefit our own beloved country.
The economy of China’s economy registered a steep growth from 1978 to 2006,. For the last three decades the economy of China grew at a pace of 9.7% per annum.
In 2006, the GDP of China increased to US$2.63 trillion. At present, China is the wWorld"s fourth largest economic power. The per capita GDP ihas reached ncreased from US$168 in 1978 to US$2,042 in 2006, and. tThe total trade volume increased from US$20.6 billion to US$1.76 trillion.
The foreign exchange reserve increased from US$167 million to USS 1.33 trillion, while t. The npopulation umber of people below the poverty line has decreased to 21.5 million from 250 million. The China's eleventh five-year plan (2006-10) of China aimsed at a balanced and well coordinated development plan for both rural and urban economiesy, so that the whole economy can achieve a sustainable growth.
As per the bilateral agreement between Bangladesh and China signed in July 2007, China will import US$53 million worth of frozen fish, jute and leather from Bangladesh. The China-Bangladesh Joint Agriculture Committee has committed more investments in the agriculture sector of Bangladesh.
In April 2007, China has partici-
pated in the SAARCaarc summit as an observer. Among the 14 neighbouring countries, China has made border related agreements with 12 countries. Office equipment and computers that Japan used to import from Europe or USA are now importeding from China.
In 2005, total overseas investment byof China reached US$11.3 billion. At the Beijing Conference in November 2006, China, once a recipient of foreign aid, announced grants of US$5.5 billion to 48 African countries. China is now the 3rd largest foreign investor in Africa after USA and France. At present, China is the 3rd largest exporting country after USA and Germany, since overtaking Japan in 2004.
At present, there are 106 billionaires in China. The number is seven times higher than last year's, and has been increasing at a faster rate than those in the USA and the Europe. In 2004, there were only 4 million motor vehicles in China, which climbed to 19 million in 2005. There are 500 vehicles for every thousand people in USA and only 8.vehicles per thousand people in China, signifying the huge
room for further growth.
China has a competitive advantage in terms of cheap labour. The1 government has a favourable tax and land usage policy. There iares plenty of skilled and educated manpower. China spends only US$23,000 annually for a postdoctorate individual, whereas in USA a PhD would cost not less than US$200,000 per annum.
A few years back, no Chinese company was in the list of the wWorld"s top 25 business organiszations, but,, iln 2007, six Chinese organiszations made their way toin the list, competing with
European, American and Japanese companies. The official population of China is about 1.3 billion, whereas, unofficially, the figure is 1.5 billion. The PPP (Purchasing Power Parity) (PPP) and GDP (Gross Domestic Product) (GDP) of China are the highest in Asia. The annual GDP growth rate hisas been in the range of 6-9% for the last five years.
The cost of labour in China will
not increase much from the current level within the next 50 years,. This which will help iChinat to attain economic advancement at a faster pace compared to other developing countries. The indus-
tries of China’s industries are very productive,, alf China does nd if they do not face any external impediment or obstacles to start more industries, China will lead the global industrial sector and will play the key role in the world economy.
Several industries in China, lincludingike electronic goods, chemicals and others, have madeundergone tremendous growth. China is making parallel progress in almost every industry. The industrialiszation of modem China can only be compared with the industrialiszation that took place in USA in the early twentieth century.
At present, the amount of foreign investments of China has crossed the amount of foreign investment of USA. About 67% of the foreign investment (US$166 billion) that took place in East Asia during 1996 to 2001, was invested in China. China will not have to pay 26% of its outstanding loan, which is 30% of the total GDP. Another report confirms that in 2003,36% of country"s exports came from companies that have foreign investment.
The Chinese gGovernment has taken various steps to eliminate poverty. In the last 25 years, about 220 to 290 million Chinese people came out of poverty level due to rural development and reform programs. The key success factor behind die poverty eradication in
of China was the growth of national GDP. But only GDP growth cannot : curtail the poverty alone.
China was quick to realisze this fact, and it incorporated the development of export-oriented industries in the coastal areas, instead of agricultural growth, in its development strategies and policies.
During 1999-2001, a new dimension was added toin the poverty elimination plan. The government initiated a 10-year plan with diversified programs to eradicate poverty. Several development initiatives in the fields of agriculture, rural development, education, transport and communication were taken.
The migration of rural people to industrial towns was encouraged. The gGovernment initiated allowances and insurance for the urban unemployed group, and. The Government also undertook a ""Great Western Development Strategy"” to develop the western region of China in 2000.
In last few years, the Chinese gGovernment has also revised tThe National Agricultural Policy several times. After becoming a member of WTO, China has set a market-driven, multi-faced and commercially viable target for the food crops production. The use of science and technology will help to attain that goal. The new policy took into consideration quality and food value, health protection, and supply management.
The development policy of the Chinese gGovernment is to transform the economy from its agricultural base to athen industrial base, and to improve the standard of living of the people. To fulfill this objective, tChinesehe gGovernment is working to enhance the earnings and education levels of the fanners so that they become motivated to migrate to towns.
This policy has been embedded in various national programs ofin China. For this initiative, the total number of people dependent on agriculture has come down from 70% to 50% in last two decades. It seems that, China will soon replace Japan to become the largest business partner of USA. Thejapanese companies have already started to invest in China.
China never stops surprising me. How can a giant economy such as China sustain its high GDP growth over a prolonged period of time? How can a socialist government be so business and customerfriendly that it launches a customer satisfaction survey at its airports? It seems that the country and the regime isare on a continuous learning curve,parade and always want to walk the talk
Bangladesh and its people have many things to learn from China, and we should take advantage of thise relationship with China for the benefit of our people and their sustainable future.
Mamun Rashid is a Daily Star contributor.