Beijing model

Nijs believes that the Chinese model of development, the so-called Beijing Consensus which emphasizes prudence in market reforms and national sovereignty, has its advantages.

"The West are used to telling African countries that if you are liberalized, privatized and become more democratic, we will help you. But China treats African countries as equal partners -- the partnership rather than conditional relationship," she said.

"More and more economists, including me, are considering the Beijing Consensus a better model in this century than the Washington model," Nijs said.

China should not be forced to change its characteristics. "People sometimes make the mistakes that modernization equals Westernization. It's not the case. We cannot force the Western model on anything in the world," she added.

Instead, the West should see China as a stakeholder in its own right, and a co-maker of a new world order. "China's rise lies on the changing of geo-economy which is tilting towards the East, not the financial crisis in western countries. China is expected to represent 15 to 20 percent of global GDP in 15 years. It's not wise to close eyes to it," she said.

Challenges and opportunities 

China has been affected by the current financial crisis, but Nijs does not expect China's economy to make a sharp downturn. Compared with those of the United States and the Europe, Chinese stock markets experienced less volatility in recent weeks and so did the Renminbi exchange rate. Inflation in China is far less a cause of concern than that in Iceland, she said.

"I think we will see China as the motor of world economic growth in the next few years with its growth rate of 8 percent maybe," she said.

Nijs said major challenges for China are from internal rather than from external.

China has to secure the main resources it needs, such as energy, steel, clean water and soya beans. "The society will be under pressure if such needs are turned down, which could lead to social unrest," she said.

Another challenge is to continue the system reforms, including enhancing the rule of law, fighting corruption and further developing the private sector.

Nijs said the Chinese government has taken initiatives to tackle the problems by putting into place programs to meet international accounting standards and efforts to improve the rule of law.

China is also trying to bring back traditional ethical standards, such as Confucianism, to counter the influence of materialism, she said.

The Chinese government, Nijs said, is trying hard to keep what she called "five balances": the urban vs. the rural; the western region development vs. that of the eastern regions; the nature vs. the human needs; economic growth vs. stability in the society; and the internal development vs. going global.

"These five balances are essential to China's long-term development," she said.

With the rise of China as a trading power comes increasing frictions between China and its major trading partners. Nijs suggested that China handle them carefully, such as the issues concerning anti-dumping and safety of productions with the European Union.

In Nijs' opinion, Europe and China should favor each other in order to improve their relations. "It is time for Europe to recognize China as a market economy and on the other hand for China to start creating jobs in Europe," she said.

When Chinese companies set up production lines or open research and development centers in Europe, like what Chinese auto industry is doing in North America, Europeans will treat China more positively, Nijs said.

"Like Germans who are proud to work for the American company of Opel, more and more Europeans will be proud to work for big Chinese multinationals such as the China National Offshore Oil Corporation, Haier and Bao Steel. It will demonstrate that the rise of China is an opportunity for the world," she said.

(Xinhua News Agency November 7, 2008)