Further studies on Comparative Government and Politics

Things you need to know about China

There are no states in China. China has 34 provincial-level administrative units: 23 provinces, 4 municipalities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing), 5 autonomous regions (Guangxi, Inner Mongolia, Tibet, Ningxia, and Xinjiang) and 2 special administrative regions (Hong Kong, Macau).  Since the economic reform took place in 1978, China has emerged on the international stage as a fast-growing powerhouse in Southeast Asia. It takes Chinese civilization as the mainstay and Chinese culture as the basis. The common language is Chinese (mandarin). The various ethnic groups within China's territory are collectively referred to as the Chinese nation.

The Great Wall, Dragon tattoo, panda are one of the important symbols of the Chinese nation. Confucianism, Taoism, tai-chi, Fengshui, kung fu, etc are originated from China. Covering approximately 9,600,000 square kilometres (3,700,000 sq mi), it is the third-largest country by total area. China is bordered by 14 countries, neighbouring to 8 countries. It borders North Korea and Russia to the northeast, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the northwest, Mongolia due north, Afghanistan and Pakistan to the west, India, Nepal and Bhutan to the southwest, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam to the south. Since the past thirty years or so, China has been the world's fastest-growing economy, it has a GDP of 11,937.56 billion dollars in 2017, and America has a GDP of 19,362.45 billion dollars, which shortens the gap between the China economy and the U.S. economy.

For around one hundred and forty years the United States had the world’s largest economy and it accounted for 22% of global GDP. China has overtaken the US through comparisons of total economic strength by using over one measure indicators, and one of those indicators is GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP). So far, according to economic data and international influence, China is not regarded as the number one economy, but its economy thrives and will make progress in the future. China overtook the US and became the world's largest trading nation in 2013, which is described as "a landmark milestone" by Beijing for the country.

China's education system is the largest in the world. It has more university students than the EU and the US combined, and there is a growing demand for higher education among its young people. China puts education in an important strategic position and encourages people to receive higher education. A large number of young people go to overseas countries for higher education like America, the UK and Japan. At the same time, there are a rising number of students from other countries coming to China for higher education. It is widely acknowledged that China's rapid growth over the past few decades has been remarkable, and so it is the same with it’s’ influence in the world economy and in international affairs. To some countries, this is a threat, while to others, it is a promise, but for many, it is a mystery. In 2017 both the IMF and the World Bank now rate China as the world’s largest economy based on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), a measure that adjusts countries’ GDPs for differences in prices. For more enquires visit  

 (https://www.topchinatravel.com/china-guide/china-overview/)

There are exactly zero states in China and they are unitary states. Its internal divisions are not sovereign and independent, like the states of the USA and other states. They are provinces or regions and not states for administrative convenience.  A unitary state, or unitary government, is a governing system in which a single central government has total power over all of its other political subdivisions. A unitary state is the opposite of a federation, where governmental powers and responsibilities are divided. In a unitary state, the political subdivisions must carry out the directives of the central government but have no power to act on their own. It is on record that out of the 193 member countries of the United Nations, 165 are unitary states.  The United Kingdom and France are two well-recognized examples of a unitary state. This means that only 28 countries practice the federal system of government while165 countries are unitary states.