The Township and Village Enterprises of Mainland China: Lessons Learned for Philippine Countryside Development Strategy

Gloria Jumamil – Mercado, MNSA

Abstract

Mainland China's 1978 reforms brought to the fore the empowerment of the local governments at the county, townships and village levels which spurred the emergence and accelerated the growth of the Township and Village Enterprises (TVEs). As Jean Oi aptly put it, the core of China's “economic miracle” is a massive upsurge of rural industrialization. The decade of the 1980's saw the Chinese economy taking off in vast areas of the countryside. While one of the key intervention areas is the “open door policy”, the role of the local governments can never be undermined. The unprecedented development of the TVEs which engendered rural industrialization is both a “puzzle and a miracle”, an ambivalence that can be borne out, in the uniqueness of a market economy within a communist polity. In the Republic of the Philippines, the Small and Micro Business Enterprises (SMBEs) is envisioned to be the lifeline of the economy as it position itself to be an active player in the global market. Thus, the government is taking a proactive stand in ensuring that its policy framework and institutional mechanism is in sync with what is conducive to the growth of the SMBEs, but proceeds with caution not to intervene in the market dynamics and the synergy of open market operations.Keywords: Chen shui-Bian, Cross-Strait Policy, Taiwan independence, Taiwan presidential election.

Keywords: TVEs, SMBEs, Local Governments, Rural Industrialization, Countryside Development