In Asia Times, Florence Chan writes about the propensity for local Chinese officials to exaggerate economic statistics in order to enhance their careers: “In China, one’s political career is always pegged to his or her performance, which is mostly assessed by the growth of gross domestic product (GDP) within the person’s jurisdiction. To win promotion, local authorities are tempted to doctor local GDP figures. Though Beijing has made it clear that development should be sustainable and scientific, governments at local levels still engage in a GDP growth race that seems unlikely to slow significantly until the 17th Chinese Communist Party National Congress in 2007, which might witness some important reshuffles. ” The full story is here.
Lies, damn lies and Chinese statistics
Posted by Sophie Beach | Oct 22, 2004
