Why China's growth is obvious

By Josepha Jabo

I was recently in China for the 2015 course for information officers and journalists from English speaking African countries from July 22-August 4, 2015, where I learnt a lot about China’s economy and media.

 ‘China has reportedly become the world’s largest potato producer, accounting for 25% of global production.’ And with the world’s largest population of 1.3 billion people, China has the obvious numerical strength to grow even faster economically.

 A TV programme stated that “Every week in China, a billionaire is minted,” and that currently there are 360 dollar billionaires in China who have for the most part made their money through bio-technology and Internet innovation.

It is no wonder that China has been nicknamed ‘The World’s Factory’.  The President of China International Publishing Group, Zhou Mingew said “The growing rate of China is obvious. In 2007, the US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was at 100% and China’s GDP was at 100% but by 2013, the US GDP was at 96% and China’s GDP was at 190%. China is now one of the major driving forces for world trade.

In 2006, the US had 127 major trade partners while China had 70. However, by 2014, the US had dropped to 73 major trade partners while China had 124. China has international cooperation. China’s 2014 foreign investments in stood at $2.7b in 2002 but by 2014, it was $200b. China produces 80% of the world’s air conditioning products, 70% of the world’s mobile phones and 60% of the world’s shoes.”

Zhou revealed that China is the number one automobile maker in the world, entering into joint ventures with companies such as Volkswagen, Toyota, Volvo and BMW. China now owns Volvo. This is because it has a large market. China not only assembles cars but now about 80% of the car parts are produced locally. There are four to six million automobiles in Beijing and as a result one is only allowed to drive four days out of five days in a weekday.

Unfortunately, pollution is the cost of Chinese development. Coal is the main pollutant in the country so China is resorting to the installment of windmills and solar panels as a clean energy alternative.

The Chinese work hard and play hard. Overseas tourism, where they are renowned for their shopping sprees, has become the new Chinese pastime. Huang Youyi, the Former Vice President of China International Publishing Group said, “In 2012, China became the world’s number one source of tourists.117 million Chinese travelled overseas as tourists in 2014.”

 With new university graduates, the Chinese government has to create between 7-10 million new jobs annually. Nonetheless, the unemployment rate remains low at 4% and China has a minimum wage of $250 per month.

 China is the second largest economy in the world after the US. Her 2014 GDP was $10.4 trillion. Despite China being the world’s largest developing country, this has not stopped her from giving aid to other countries.

Dr. Xu Liping from the China’s International Poverty Reduction Centre said that in 2009, Africa was the biggest recipient of China’s foreign aid receiving 46% of it.

China is the third biggest territory in the world next to Russia and Canada, with 34 administrative divisions (provinces), an 18,000 km coastal line and 9.6 million square kilometers. Understandably, China’s coastal areas grew faster economically than its interior.

In spite of all its advances China, just like Africa, does not consider itself to be developed but part of the developing world because it has an uneven economic development across the regions. China’s east coast is much more developed than the rural areas in the western interior.

Due to this regional imbalance, China has developed an interesting system to uplift the poorer rural areas in the interior. Its government has encouraged cooperation between the prosperous eastern China, along the coast with the poorer western rural areas in the interior by creating partnerships where the rich regions help the uplift poor.

You would think that with 80% of China’s population being farmers they would be taxed. Surprisingly, Chinese farmers do not pay tax. The Communist Party stopped the land tax to improve people’s livelihoods. Even under the one-child policy, farmers have been treated more leniently as a Chinese farmer was fined only 3,000 Yuan if his wife had a second child.

Whereas in urban areas if your wife had a second child you were fined heavily and you held a government position—you would lose that position. The Chinese government empowers farmers’ productivity in the rural areas by improving rural infrastructure, providing more fresh drinking water and irrigation sources through the construction of small canals, water cellars, ponds, pumping stations and reservoirs.

The rural power grid renovation project involves delivering electricity to every household and making lighting, telephone and television services, as well as medical care available. All these measures have contributed to China’s poverty reduction.

Over the past 25 years China has lifted 70% of the world’s poor out of poverty. Dr. Xu Liping said “China is the first developing country to reach the poverty reduction goal. According to a United Nations report, 70% of the achievements made in the global poverty reduction cause come from China.”

Also, The National Poverty Line (at 2800 RMB) has dropped from 250 million people in 1978 at 30.7% to 70.17 million people in 2014 at 7.2%. China provides free education for nine years, from age 6-15 is free and lunch is provided for their school-going children.

The writer works at the Uganda Media Centre