China is one of the fastest growing economies in the 21st century,, it has sustained a high rate of average annual GDP growth of around 9% since 1995. Many strategies and policies have been implemented to ensure these periods of positive GDP growth for maximum periods of time. The major strategies undertaken by the Chinese government currently are all apart of the 5-year plan that are a series of social and economic development initiatives and has been established in the economy since 1953.
The five-year plans of the Chinese economy have been implemented since 1953 and are currently underway with their twelfth guideline that lasts from 2011 till 2015; the themes and targets in the plan are the basis for China’s strategies in sustaining not only economic growth but economic development, sustainable energy sources and raising the living standards of its population.
An important goal of this plan is to develop China’s western regions. This goal is particularly important, as across China in past years there has been a division of income across the geographical range of China. From the eastern provinces such as Beijing and Shanghai you see from the diagram to the right (Sourced from Riley, 2014) GDP per capita is significantly greater in the eastern provinces then in the west. This is mainly due to the eastern side of China being utilised through transnational corporations (TNCs) as these provinces are located on the coast. The Chinese government aims to develop this western region by developing infrastructure such as transport, hydroelectric plants, energy and telecommunications. Of which the Chinese government have already started 92 key construction projects in western regions, with a total investment of more than 1.3 trillion Yuan (An, 2013). They aim for this investment to increase job opportunities and thus increasing standard of