The Changing Face of Rural Enterprises

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the emergence and development of China’s xiangzhen qiye, the township and village enterprises (TVEs), from an institutional viewpoint. The questions that interest us include: How is it that TVEs emerged under seemingly adverse political and economic conditions? How have they been able to achieve such an exceptional performance over the past two decades? What role did central and local governments play in their development? What role have TVEs...