China’s once great northeast is now a rust belt – and no one knows how to fix it
Critics warn that former World Bank vice-president’s proposals to lure lighter industries to Jilin lack common sense
A proposal by a prominent Chinese economist to revive the “rust belt” province of Jilin has triggered controversy among academics, underscoring the struggle to bring new life to an area saddled with debt and inefficient plants.
Justin Lin Yifu, who was the World Bank’s chief economist and a senior vice-president from 2008 to 2012, proposed that Jilin, on the border with North Korea, encourage light and textile industries to move from the country’s coastal areas, where labour costs are higher. Jilin should also consider expanding heavy industry and manufacturing.
The suggestions are part of a 300,000-word policy proposal published by a team headed by Lin, a Peking University professor who studies how less-developed areas can catch up with wealthier ones.
In it, the team suggest that Jilin – which lags behind China’s affluent coastal areas in terms of per capita GDP – should open its arms to manufacturers relocating from China’s more expensive areas.
By doing so Jilin could raise local incomes and improve its economic performance, it said.
