Lessons from China
of a just international economic order are part of the external factors causing underdevelopment. Although development is a result of both external and internal factors, internal factors should always play a more important role and these are closely linked to culture. It is culture that influences institutional design that breeds an effective industrial policy.
Former Ambassador to China Christopher Mutsvangwa says if DNA is the foundation of the institutional memory of living organisms, then culture is its equivalent in the institutional memory of society. Culture, he says, is the arts and other manifestations of human intellectual achievement regarded collectively. It is shown through ideas, customs and social behaviour of society. It is the embodiment of shared values that define the identity of a social grouping.
“China with the largest population on earth has developed its culture over 5 000 years. Its capacity to defend itself ensured that by and large its society could repulse, withstand or absorb repeated ructions from other outside societies. It is this aspect that has given Chinese culture pride of place among its society and admiration from other societies,” said Ambassador
Mutsvangwa.
Culture extends across all dimensions of social capital such as mutual confidence, trust and responsible civic behaviour. Unesco emphasises that culture is a key element in the fight against poverty. Preserving cultural values is very important for development and Zimbabwe should develop and value trust in its institutions so as to validate the social contract between Government and the governed. Trust is a measure of how people evaluate the moral fabric in their society and a lack of it breeds other ills such as dishonesty and corruption.
Corruption raises several issues regarding the relationship between citizens and their governments. President Xi Jinping warns that financial scandals, or abuse of public resources to achieve personal benefits, undermines bases of authority and legitimacy.
Corruption constitutes a violation of the unwritten contract between citizens and public officials. A culture of corruption in society distorts public demands, increases the cost, reduces quality, and delay the competition of public works.
Third world countries can therefore pluck a leaf from China on how they can broaden their culture industries and link their development to unique characteristics of their people’s cultures and not from entirely prescriptive modes of development not in sync with their value systems an d
beliefs.