The Role of the Capital of the Chinese Diaspora in the Economic Development of the PRC during the Reform Period (1979 – early 2020s)

The paper focuses on assessing the influence of the Chinese diaspora (overseas Chinese, in Chinese: huaqiao-huaren) on the economic development of the People's Republic of China in the course of the reform and opening-up policy (1979-2020s). The author has studied virtually all the key official documents of the PRC leadership, which effectively engaged the Chinese diaspora in the nation's long-term strategy of socialist modernisation. Based on the analysis of a large body of academic literature and statistical data, the author identified three main stages in the development of overseas Chinese enterprises in the PRC: 1979-1991, original capital accumulation and the policy of labour-intensive production of export products; 1992-2007, an investment boom and the transition from labour-intensive to capital-intensive production of export products; 2008-early 2020s, the transition to high-tech production and the replacement of foreign enterprises. Each stage is characterised in the context of the PRC's diaspora policy and key developments in China and the world. The paper analyses the sectoral structure of the business activities of overseas Chinese-owned enterprises in the PRC. It shows that for almost the entire period of the reform and opening up policy, these companies focused on manufacturing, while their interest in the service sector was also growing. In total, overseas Chinese invested USD1.9 trillion in the PRC between 1979 and 2022, accounting for more than 67% of China's total FDI stock. The author concludes that the PRC leadership has rationally used the resources of the Chinese diaspora to ensure their full participation in China's economic development during the reform and opening-up period.