ABSTRACT
China is unusual as a country in that its economic and social policies tend to be evidence-based and that its policies are framed in five-year plans. China has a very poorly developed legal system and its treatment of citizens can be capricious, with draconian punishments for those who are perceived as stepping out of line. The publication Eliminating Poverty Through Development in China by Wang Xiaolu, Li Shi and Wang Sangui, produced by the China Development Research Foundation under the Chairmanship of Wang Meng Kui, former President of the Development Research Centre of the State Council, throws interesting and honest light on China’s efforts to reduce poverty. China’s policy approach to issues is analytical. Wang et al. demonstrate with statistics and correlations the impact on poverty of infrastructure construction. Not only developing countries but also more wealthy ones, including the UK, would do well to absorb the lessons.
