Reflections on Governance & Economic ... - Democracy and Society

The chance to explore a foreign land for two months free of responsibilities in search of experiences to learn from is a rare opportunity, and one I am not likely to encounter again.? In many ways, the journey of my last few months was as I expected a chance to educate myself outside the classroom on the impacts of governance and economic policy in a rapidly developing nation.? In another way however it was more than I might have ever imagined, bringing me to question my own beliefs and understandings not only of China but my homeland.

Many have written recently on the importance of quality governance in contrast with the political focus on style of governance.? While I am not yet of this school, I do find myself more and more frequently questioning notions that one style of governance is innately more functional than another.? More than anything else, I have come to wonder at the economic realities of development and their impact upon a nation?s culture.? As wealth diffuses throughout a country?s populace, can or should steps be taken to balance growing appreciation of material things with a people?s cultural heritage?

My observations of China were at best anecdotal, casual and the crude interpretations of a foreigner, yet still the disparity between social classes and lust for western goods was evident and stunning.? Dealing with members of differing generational cohorts, I regularly found the abrupt impact of China?s swift development difficult to ignore.? The nation?s government is clearly both aware and deeply concerned about these changes, yet in the face of rapid development and the growth of economic opportunity it is difficult to bemoan the nature of China?s progress.

There is the question of whether or not changes in the nation?s economic policies are feasible at this point, as wealth has grown concentrated in the hands of a few is there any reason to believe the government can address inequality without causing further discontent?? One of the present goals of the latest five-year plan is to address economic inequality.? This goal is an effort to broaden access to China?s prosperity among other sectors of the country?s populace and shift to a more sustainable model for economic growth.? ?Given the progression of inequality and the adoption of capitalist principles, does there still exist the possibility that the nation?s distribution of wealth will grow more equitable or is the present five-year plan toward greater equality purely government rhetoric?

At the core of my uncertainty lies the central question of whether or not economic development must innately be accompanied by rising inequality.? Largely I have come to the conclusion that yes inequality is packaged with development but that this issue can be mitigated by quality governance as a nation transitions.? The question then becomes what method of governance is most conducive to an eventual and preferably equitable shift from the developmental style of economy to a more stable and long-term method of sustained growth.

Source: http://www.democracyandsociety.com/blog/2011/09/03/reflections-on-governance-economic-inequality/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=reflections-on-governance-economic-inequality

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