ABSTRACT
In China, local governments experience a great deal of pressure from the central government to develop their economies, which also motivates the subnational governments to establish development zones. This chapter shows a different picture, one which is not aligned with the successful cases of development zones studied by international organisations such as the World Bank. It explores what has led to the local variation in implementing the development zone policy in China. Viewing decentralisation as a dynamic process, which involves frequently changing relationships between the central and subnational governments, can reconcile the ideological split on the question of who is responsible for a country's economic growth and development. The chapter analyses the economic development strategies and their effects against the backdrop of changing intergovernmental relationships in the course of decentralisation. It focuses on how inter-governmental negotiation worked as a key mechanism to engender development strategies that brought about different paths of development.
