Experts on the Chinese Dream

Zhou Hong

Director General， Institute of European Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

The Chinese Dream brings new opportunities rather than threats. The world is diverse and multi-dimensional. When we compare various countries， we can use many indices and elements other than GDP. The rise of China is not only economic improvements but also advancements in culture， social system construction and political governance. We hope to prove that our road is accessible and feasible， demonstrating that other nations should be encouraged to find their own suitable paths of development.

Mohammad Selim

Professor of Political Science， Kuwait University

In transitional phases， a nations dream is a national project. In China， the Chinese Dream means the renewal of the nation， a project driven by Chinese leadership. The Chinese Dream is definitely a goal of development， with optimum guidance through strategic roadmaps to the goal. The key to the realization of the Chinese Dream is the quality of Chinas economic growth， which may be determined by its degree of economic openness. The Chinese Dream can foster significant enlightenment in the Arab world and has exerted or is currently exerting influence on Arab states， inspiring them to construct their own dreams. The essence of all these dreams is flavored with freedom， justice and dignity.

Martin Jacques

Visiting Senior Fellow， London School of Economics and Political Science

The Chinese Dream， while emphasizing the importance of the nation and its unity， suggests a different kind of relationship between state and society. It manifestly empowers the individual as the individual is encouraged to dream about not just the countrys future but his or her own future. We can already see this in the young with their sense of optimism and potential for the future. China will， over periods defined in the Plenum statement， pass through huge transformation in countless different ways. A different kind of Chinese individual， more cosmopolitan， global， empathetic， confident， broad-minded， and environmentally aware， will emerge. But the Chinese Dream is， nonetheless， above all a dream about China， about the nation and its metamorphosis.

Dr. Robert Lawrence Kuhn

Author of How Chinas Leaders Think， a biography of former President Jiang Zemin， and chair of the Kuhn Foundation

The Third Plenum of the 18th CPC Central Committee provided a transformative vision for China and paved the road to the Chinese Dream. In his explanatory address to the CPC Central Committee， President Xi Jinping said， “We must waste no time deepening reform in important areas with even greater political courage and wisdom， firmly eliminate all ideological concepts.” He stressed “the development of practice is boundless， liberated thought is boundless， reform and opening up are boundless as well； there is no escape found in lingering and retreating， reforming and opening up only know the progressive tense， they do not have a perfect tense.” These are the strongest reform-oriented words in a generation， a public commitment to set a high bar for benchmark policies.

Howard Aster

Mosaic Press， Canada

We are what we eat. But today， not only is our food global – we also dress alike， tweet alike， entertain ourselves alike， and may even think alike. The challenge for any society is how to sustain distinctiveness in the context of such enormous global ‘alike-ness. Every society faces this challenge. The answer to sustaining distinctiveness is crafting unique social narratives， doing our own story-telling. The narrative now being crafted in China， “the Chinese Dream，” must be understood as a contemporary effort by new Chinese leadership to define and propel a distinctive and convincing narrative that people will recognize internally and will be persuasive internationally. The Chinese Dream is best interpreted as an attempt to ‘re-brand China in the 21st Century.

Cai Fang

Director of Institute for Population & Labor Economics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

The Chinese Dream is really not a dream， but a reality to which we are looking forward. With Chinas demographic dividends disappearing， traditional economic development mode can no longer act as the engine of Chinas economic growth. So we must carry out reform to obtain institutional dividends. According to studies in my field， the outlined reform will likely directly result in economic prosperity. Most important， perhaps， is reform of the hukou （household registration） system， which will allow migrant workers to become official urban residents. People-centric urbanization can increase available labor， which extends demographic dividends， leading to economic improvement. We should also encourage greater competition and prevent monopolies， allowing various forms of ownership to enter the market so as to enhance the efficiency of resource allocation. This should be the primary engine of the countrys economic growth. Finally， we need demographic reform. Relaxation of the one-child policy can go further. If our birth rate is allowed to grow， we can re-balance the demographic structure and increase the labor supply. As a result， we will boost productivity. To reform is to guarantee the sustainable development of Chinas society and economy. In the end， the result will be the Chinese Dream.

Maria-Cristina Rosas

Professor at the Center of the International Relations Studies， National Autonomous University of Mexico

The Chinese economys dynamism has been considered key in navigating challenges of the current international environment， especially when it comes to the stagnation of the global economy. A number of analysts have suggested that the traditional leadership of the United States and European Union has deteriorated severely， relegating their hope to the hands of emerging countries such as China and India. Very prestigious publications have indicated that China and India are now the engines of the international economy. Yet， China faces enormous domestic challenges， such as its demographic transition， environmental degradation， food and energy regulation， and this is where the “Chinese Dream” comes from. Everyone is glancing around the international community looking for new strategies to cope with the aforementioned challenges. Yet， internally， countries possess certain capabilities that， if maximized， can contribute to more prosperous societies. This seems to be the message of the “Chinese Dream”： despite the difficulties the international community is facing， China has a growing internal market， a growing skilled labor force， natural resources and the political will to respond， from the inside， to a highly unpredictable “outside.”

Jagannath P. Panda

Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses， India

The Chinese Dream cannot be realized without a stable external environment. Be it border conflicts with India， South China Sea disputes with the Southeast Asian countries or East China Sea issues with Japan， China has to rise to the occasion and must show its credibility as a responsive and responsible country. The way China behaves and constructs foreign policy will go a long way in projecting Chinas image. So far， China has been seen positively as an economic power by fellow Asian countries. Beijing currently contributes almost 58 percent to Asias economic growth and maintains almost $1.3 trillion in trade with the rest of Asia. China has emerged as the largest trading partner of Vietnam， Malaysia， South Korea and Japan. Out of a total of $77 billion in overseas investments in Asia， China accounts for half. All these figures point towards Chinas integration with the rest of Asia – it will be hard to isolate the Chinese Dream from the dreams of the rest of Asia.