{"id":3564,"date":"2026-08-22T15:05:28","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T11:35:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/?p=3564"},"modified":"2026-08-22T16:39:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T13:09:08","slug":"lessons-from-chinas-reform-experience-for-developing-countries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/lessons-from-chinas-reform-experience-for-developing-countries\/","title":{"rendered":"Insights from China\u2019s Reform Experience for Developing Countries"},"content":{"rendered":"

Embracing Openness and Inclusiveness to Achieve Prosperity and Strength: <\/strong>Insights from China\u2019s Reform Experience for Developing Countries<\/strong><\/p>\n

Liu Linzhang, <\/em>PhD candidate, Middle East Studies Institute, Shanghai International Studies University, China.<\/em><\/p>\n

Zhang Yuan, <\/em>Professor, Middle East Studies Institute, Shanghai International Studies University, China.<\/em><\/p>\n

China\u2019s reform and opening-up represents a profound social transformation that has not only reshaped its domestic economic and social structures but also exerted far-reaching influence at the international political level. For developing countries at large, how China managed to maintain strategic focus and achieve self-development amidst a complex and volatile international environment is a experience worthy of exploration.<\/p>\n

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Cultivate a Global Vision and Strategic Thinking<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The success of China\u2019s reforms is firstly attributable to its accurate assessment of the international situation and its long-term planning. Understanding political dynamics, grasping economic trends, and comprehending cultural patterns with a global vision enables a country to position itself correctly amidst the tides of globalization. Observing the contemporary era, discerning the profound adjustments in the international landscape, and strategizing national development framework help avoid short-sightedness and maintain policy continuity. Generations of Chinese leaders keenly perceives that peace and development are the themes of era, decisively shifting the national focus to economic construction and opening the door to the outside world. This global vision and strategic thinking enabled China to follow the historical trend and seize the opportunities presented by globalization. For developing countries, regardless of the internal and external pressures they face, cultivating such foresight that transcends immediate difficulties is essential. They need to base themselves on their own realities while closely monitoring global trends to formulate development strategies aligned with long-term interests.<\/p>\n

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Pursuing Greater Development in Broader Spaces<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In world of deepening interdependence, no country can develop in isolation. China\u2019s experience demonstrates that achieving leaping development requires thinking beyond the present, while vigorously attracting various factors of production, utilizing external resources and markets to achieve greater development. Since the reforms began, China rapidly integrated into the global industrial chain by attracting foreign capital, introducing technology, and expanding foreign trade. In recent years, initiatives like the BRI have promoted infrastructure connectivity and facilitated shared development with partner countries. Multiple-way opening pattern allows China to allocate resources on a larger scale and enhance its international competitiveness. For developing countries, it is crucial to transform their geographical and resource advantages into development advantages. By actively participating in the international division of labor and optimizing resource allocation in a broader space, they can gain more initiative in the new wave of global transformation.<\/p>\n

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Harmonize \u201cMultiple Voices\u201d into \u201cOne Melody\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Our world consists of numerous countries, each with different histories, cultures, social systems, and levels of development. Naturally, they emit \u201cmultiple voices\u201d when participating in international affairs. This diversity is an objective reality and a challenge for global governance. In its engagement with international affairs, China has consistently advocated for resolving differences through dialogue and consultation, encouraging countries to coordinate and complement each other, blending the \u201cmultiple voices\u201d into \u201cone melody\u201d. This approach reflects the world\u2019s diversity while serving the common interests of all nations. On global issues such as climate change, counter-terrorism, and public health, China advocates strengthening international cooperation, respecting differences in national conditions, and seeking the greatest common ground. For unstable regions marked by complex inter-state contradictions and frequent external intervention, only through inclusive dialogue can diverse demands be transformed into a joint force for maintaining regional peace and stability. The rise of developing countries should seek harmonious coexistence and win-win cooperation on the basis of diversity.<\/p>\n

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Turn Difficulties into Opportunities<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Development is never smooth sailing. After decades of globalization, the international community has entered a new critical period. The rise of unilateralism and protectionism, coupled with intensified geopolitical conflicts, has brought numerous uncertainties to national development. Faced with these difficulties, China has consistently emphasized strengthening confidence, overcoming difficulties by all means, viewing hardships as tests, challenges as opportunities, and turning passivity into initiative. Looking back, China encountered multiple external shocks during its reform process, such as the Asian financial crisis, the international financial crisis, and trade frictions. Yet, each time it managed to turn crises into opportunities, driving domestic reforms and structural adjustments. For developing countries, difficulties often signify the end of old models and the gestation of new opportunities. Currently, although challenges and opportunities coexist, opportunities still outweigh challenges. The key lies in maintaining strategic focus and finding breakthroughs amidst difficulties.<\/p>\n

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The most effective path for a nation’s development is one that is explored under its own initiative<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A core philosophy of China\u2019s reform is \u201cseeking truth from facts\u201d. For instance, China did not simply replicate the Western market economy model but instead established a socialist market economy system. Reforms in areas such as land systems and financial mechanism, China has fully considered its population scale and historical and cultural context. Every country has its unique history, culture, resource endowments, and practical conditions. The path of development must be independently chosen by its people. The success of China\u2019s reforms ultimately stems from adhering to a development path suited to its national conditions. Whether in economic system reform or opening up, China did not blindly copy Western models. Instead, it explored a development path suitable for its own context through methods like pilot programs, summarization, and gradual promotion. For developing countries, while learning from external experiences is important, what matters more is basing oneself on national realities to find one’s own development path. External experiences can be referenced but cannot be replicated. Only by proceeding from national conditions can a country forge its own successful path. The Middle Eastern countries, endowed with rich resources and unique civilizational traditions, are fully capable of exploring development models that align with their own characteristics, drawing on the experiences of others.<\/p>\n

China\u2019s reform and opening-up journey provides a vivid example of modernization achieved by a non-Western country. Its core experiences lie in grasping the trends of the times with strategic vision, integrating into the international system with an open attitude, addressing global challenges through coordination and cooperation, transforming difficulties into opportunities with resilience, and forging a national path through independent exploration. Although these experiences are rooted in China\u2019s land, the wisdom they embody holds universal reference significance for developing countries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Embracing Openness and Inclusiveness to Achieve Prosperity and Strength: Insights from China\u2019s Reform Experience for Developing Countries Liu Linzhang, PhD candidate, Middle East Studies Institute, Shanghai International Studies University, China. Zhang Yuan, Professor, Middle East Studies Institute, Shanghai International Studies University, China. China\u2019s reform and opening-up represents a profound social transformation that has not only […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":54,"featured_media":3560,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[88,53],"tags":[],"coauthors":[120],"class_list":["post-3564","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-foreign-policy-commission","category-notes-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3564","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/54"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3564"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3564\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3569,"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3564\/revisions\/3569"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3564"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3564"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3564"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iranbri.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=3564"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}