ABSTRACT
Introduction This chapter focuses on Chinese Township and Village Enterprises (TVEs) in general and Suzhou Golden Cat Cement Company in particular. TVEs have played a significant role in contemporary China’s transformation from the underindustrialized inward-looking collectivized peasant society of the Maoist period through to the industrialized outward-looking marketized economy under the leadership of Deng Xiaoping and his successors (see, e.g. Murray, 1994; Yabuki and Harner, 1999; Cook and Murray, 2001; Qi, 2004). TVE output, for example, was by 1990 ten times that of 1980, and the TVE share of China’s total industry had risen to 31.8 per cent compared to a mere 10.5 per cent in 1980 (Field, 1996). We begin by setting the context of change via summarizing the role of TVEs in China’s development trajectory before analysing the changing nature of cement production in China since the establishment of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. Then we zero in to an original in-depth case study of a successful TVE in Jiangsu Province in order to tease out the specific factors that underpin the growth of TVEs. This particular TVE is Suzhou Golden Cat Cement Company, located in Jinshan Township, Wu County, Suzhou City. The methodology of case study research is also explained. Factors analysed in the success of this TVE include the role of central government policy, local government initiatives, market conditions, the role of finance, and entrepreneurial skills. The situation of TVEs has become more problematic in recent years, especially following China’s entry to the WTO in December 2001. This case study is particularly important because it shows clearly that new strategies can indeed be developed to meet contemporary conditions and sustain TVE growth. However, the TVE faced a number of problems in developing its strategy, and thus, we argue, it provides wider lessons for policymakers in China and elsewhere.
