Skip to page content

India and its Neighbours — Part 2: China's Reforms and the Comparison

Beta

Lesson

China's reforms and the three-way comparison

Part 2 — reforms from 1978, population, sectors, human development and an appraisal.

In this lesson you will

Explain China's reforms from 1978: household plots, dual pricing, competition and special economic zones
Compare the three countries on population, sectoral composition and human development, using broad patterns
Appraise the development strategies and structure a comparison answer

Part 2 at a glance

Diagram

Reforms from 1978, in phases

Table of China's reforms after 1978: household plots in agriculture first, competition for state-owned enterprises in industry later, dual pricing, and special economic zones for foreign investment
Area	Reform after 1978
Agriculture (first phase)	Commune land divided into household plots; families kept income after fixed taxes
Industry (later phase)	Private firms and township and village enterprises compete with state-owned enterprises
Prices	Dual pricing: fixed price for a quota, market price for the rest
Foreign trade and investment	Special economic zones to attract foreign direct investment

Diagram

From communes to household plots

Table comparing the commune with the household plot: the collective decides versus the family, reward shared by all versus kept by the family after taxes, weak versus strong reason to improve the land
	Commune	Household plot
Who decides	The collective	The family
Reward for extra effort	Shared by all	Kept by the family after fixed taxes
Reason to improve the land	Weak	Strong