Institutional Contributions from the Special Economic Zones to China’s Development Path

Abstract

From the perspective of institutional economics, the practice in China’s special economic zones is a top-down compulsory institutional change. From the bringing forth of the concept to the formulation of policies and practical guidance, the special economic zones have been under the leadership of the Central Government. Meanwhile, the practice in China’s special economic zones is also a gradual institutional change. At the beginning of the special economic zones, Deng Xiaoping put forward the strategy of “crossing the river by feeling the stones”, showing a step-by-step, experimental and gradual process.