In What Ways Did Beijing Consensus Disrupt the Dominant Development Model That Came Before?

In What Ways Did Beijing Consensus Disrupt the Dominant Development Model That Came Before?
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Introduction
The Beijing Consensus is one of the world's most intriguing economic development models. During Mao's reign, the Chinese government introduced policies that greatly maligned China and dented its economic development hopes. Approaches and policies such as self-sufficiency, forced collectivisation, and the Great Leap Forward led to widespread poverty in China. Mao's approaches and policies meant that investors were not allowed to pursue personal development and wealth. The implication of Mao's actions was an economy that was dilapidated and needed an overhaul of its model for it to become the economic powerhouse it could be. After Mao's death, China introduced an economic model that set the foundation for the country's present position as one of the leading economies in the world. Instead of following in the ways of the West, China decided to follow what came to be known as the Beijing Consensus. According to Liu (2019), the Beijing Consensus was forged to be an alternative to the popular Washington Consensus. Further, Liu adds that China sought a model that would work for its people, and though the Washington Consensus had good pointers, it could not work for the people of China (2019). Through the Beijing Consensus, China focused on elements of innovation, self-determination, and the promotion of "equitable and sustainable development" (Yao, 28). Currently, China stands as one of the largest economies in the world and one that everyone calls the 'world's factory' (Woetzel et al., 2019). The above affirms that the Beijing Consensus has indeed worked for China. Therefore, provided herein is an elucidation of the Beijing Consensus, with a focus on how it changed from its predecessor, the Washington Consensus, what stayed the same, and why the Beijing Consensus (BC) matters today.
What Changed?
As already indicated, the BC was an upgrade of the Washington Consensus (WC). The Chinese government sought a system that would work within its context, and it saw little in the WC to help attain its desired goals. One of the things that changed between the BC and the WC was China's emphasis on innovation. For a country to advance, it must have an innovation agenda, and China introduced measures that helped drive innovation. According to Ramo (2004), China placed a great emphasis on innovation as a means to alleviate the problems the country was facing. To attain this, the Chinese government introduced policies that helped to foster innovation. For example, Deng Xiaoping, who took power after Mao, introduced educational reforms that emphasised the importance of R&D on economic growth through innovation (Kim and Mah, 2009). Further, he preached more about the importance of technology in the country and how embracing it would further propel the economy (Kim and Mah, 2009). Therefore, through his initiative, the country opened itself to increasingly more growth and innovation. Also, foreign direct investment increased in the country. It was the government's initiative to intensify its efforts to invite more foreign investors and coupled with greater emphasis on R&D and technology, innovation improved in the country (Kim and Mah, 2009). This was a major shift from China's traditional ways as well as a shift from the WC.
Further, it is crucial to note that China was wise enough to introduce its policies gradually (Kim and Mah, 2009). Yao (2011) adds that China was cautious in its approach to introducing new policies. Like other developing countries, the government was keen not to rush and implement policies that would soon render its economy fruitless. Therefore, all policies were introduced with a balanced approach to their impact on the economy. The implication here was that the Chinese GDP per capita did not rise as high as the developed nations, but other factors like access to basic needs, literacy levels, and employment rate improved significantly (Yao, 2011). This was a major difference or an aspect of the BC that veered off from the WC. Unlike the WC, the BC focused more on creating a level playing ground even for the government's goals, and this ensured that the economy grew in all its sectors.
Thirdly, China sought self-determination through the BC, which was simply its way of telling the world, and especially the West, that it was not welcoming to outside pressure. The adoption of the WC came with a lot of outside pressure to adopt policies and measures that would either favor the West or promote a particular agenda. However, according to Gresh (2008), China sought a model that would promote its independence, especially regarding its political and development agenda. The WC came with a lot of conditionalities that mainly centred on the governance of countries that sought to introduce policy reforms (Naim, 1999). Instead of the WC ushering in the new reform process, it was used to introduce policies that were deemed crucial by the International Financial Institutions (IFI) like the World Bank and the IMF (Archibond, Coulibaly, & Okonjo-Iweala, 2021). Through the interference of these IFIs, a majority of developing countries put little emphasis on local ownership and also reduced spending on programs that would work or fit in their context. For example, Archibong, Coulibaly, & Okonjo-Iweala (2021) note that some African countries cut spending on pro-poor programs and also subsidies in crucial sectors like Agriculture. In the end, instead of driving economic growth, these policies laid the foundation for upheaval and unrest in Africa. Unlike the WC, which was soon overshadowed by conditionalities, the BC emphasized self-determination, which meant freedom from the influence of IFIs. China did not want its reforms to be under the influence of these outside powers that sought to curve a colonial relationship with the country. Even today, China is still riding on the popularity of BC in its pursuit of investment in developing countries. As Turin (2010) indicates, China is not looking to impose its ideologies and inclinations to partner countries. While some may disagree with Turin's take, on the surface, the BC spells freedom, and this is attractive to many developing countries, unlike the WC. So, the biggest change was that China sought after and adopted a policy that worked for its good and that of its people, and refused outside pressures and conditions that would have introduced reforms that IFIs promoted.
What remained the same
Despite the introduction of the Beijing Consensus, the major goal of economic growth and development remained the same. The economic growth of a country comes about as a result of the production of goods and services. The Washington Consensus emphasized the need for countries to become a producer of goods and services (Naim, 2000). In this regard, the Washington Consensus encouraged the government to invest in activities that allowed the country to become a significant producer of goods and services. Instead of developing on other countries, the model encouraged movements to make efforts needed to improve domestic production. The move aimed at ensuring that individual countries could stimulate economic development through production. When the Beijing Consensus came to be, it continued to pursue the same goal of economic growth and development. The Beijing Consensus emphasized the authoritarian and heavy state involvement in the economy, intending to accelerate economic growth. In the same way, the Washington Consensus emphasizes more on market-oriented doctrines, which ultimately seek to stimulate economic growth and development. In other words, the Beijing Consensus maintained the importance of economic growth and development, which the Washington Model had already outlined.
Moreover, the importance of exports did not change with the introduction of the Beijing Consensus. The Washington Consensus worked to promote the export of products to increase nations' competitiveness. The model emp...