CHINA’S FUTURE STEPS TO A BETTER ECONOMY
For centuries China has stood as a leading civilization, outshining the rest of the world in the arts and sciences. However, its communist system and command economy has given a great disadvantage to China because of the lack of economic growth. Since 1978, Chinese leadership has been trying to move the economy from the sluggish Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more productive and flexible economy with market elements, while containing some of its communist ways. In a communist country, the people are meant to run the country by making decisions and setting an example. However, a communist country usually ends up as a strong government police state. In addition, a communist country in most cases contains a command economy because of the strong government involvement. This command economy, which China falls under, means that there is state ownership of the factors of production and that it is a centrally planned economy. In a country where there is state ownership of assets, private individuals do not own any resources because majority is owned by the government. Also, the central-planning authority gives decisions on what is to be produced, how it is to be produced a

ced and how it is to be distributed. Therefore, an everyday citizen of China is not entitled to individual freedom or many rights and opportunities. China needs to slowly but effectively steer away from its command economy into a mixed economy, where most of its economic and political attention will be concentrated on constructing an effective market economy. Its current command economy has many disadvantages, which make China very vulnerable. Planning difficulties, inefficiencies and lack of freedom are occurring in China with its corrupt government officials, limited choices and lack of political freedom. Furthermore, planning for such an extreme economic change can be challenging at times and quite risky. China might need to look back on the transitions other countries such as Russia and Mexico made or has been making in order to learn from their mistakes.

In addition, a couple of other countries have encountered difficulties when making a transition and still have problems adapting a new system. For example, Russia was previously a command economy with communist leadership, and has now been trying to reform into a market economy. The problem they had after The Soviet had seized to exist was that there was corruption within management and ownership of newly privatized businesses because of mafia relations, there was no experienced leadership of a functioning market economy and people where heavily relying on state subsidies. Most importantly, their success was not immediate and Russia soon realized that this kind of transition could not be made overnight, that it takes time. In contrast, Mexico has adapted a market economy; however, it undergoes some other problems that occur in a market economy and may not occur in a command economy. It has been bombarded with government corruption and an unstable economy, but chooses to ignore past corruption so they cou