Forty Years of Chinese Reforms and Opening Up: View from Pakistan.

Byline: Muhammad Asif Noor

This December, it will be four decades since the great Chinese leaders Deng Xiaoping announced the famous reforms with his brilliant speech reflecting on the drift from Maoism towards reforms that had brought China where it is right now. From deep rooted poverty and low income to becoming the second largest economy of the world competing with the rest of the world. While Chinese people will be celebrating their glory of the last four decades of hard work but it is also a good time to reflect on China's past reforms and understanding the path travelled, knowing the circumstances under which such historical decisions has been taken and what were the implications of these reforms on China. This transformational phase of China's glorious achievements has also encouraged other developing countries like Pakistan to follow the model of development that may help the country to move from 'rags to riches' within the time of a generation.

For instance, the open trade policy has established China an economic juggernaut in the global market with the world's largest foreign reserves, second-largest gross domestic product (GDP), and third highest level of foreign direct investment. Today, China's world economy has reached to a staggering 18.2 per cent from a mere 1.8 per cent in 1978. At regional level, China's economic romance speaks volume. It is not just an emerging world economy but has returned to its status as a major economic power in the world. The incumbent government lead by Prime Minister Imran Khan has put forward the desire to follow the path and learn from China about the process to help the country and citizens to come out of sheer and abject poverty. The reforms were gradual but effective and they were Chinese model of reformation and opening up with sharp contrast from the European or any other western model of reforms.

Gradually with opening up to the new ventures, foreign trade and investment has helped the country to diversify its strength through ownership, micro and macroeconomic stability, control on inflation which later helped to savings which leads to investment. With visionary leadership like Mao, Deng Xiaoping, a China's paramount leader, at the Third Plenum of the Eleventh Central Committee in 1978, and now President Xi have steered the nation to the new highest of accomplishments in the history of mankind.

Back in 1970s, China was struggling with its status as poorest of the poor nation on earth with having a rural and agricultural base of the economy with inefficient industrial base apart from facing the challenges of the failure of the Great...