Another Look at the East Asian Miracle

This article examines the main ingredients of the East Asian success story in each subphase of its post-war transition growth process. It focuses mainly on Taiwan (China), with comparative side glances at the Republic of Korea. The initial conditions facing the region were favorable, especially in Taiwan (China). The early import substitution subphase was unusually mild and contributed to the emergence of strong linkages between agricultural and nonagricultural activities. Subsequently, flexible labor markets, human capital policies, and major macro and structural policy reforms culminated in an increasingly export-oriented industrialization effort. Once labor surpluses were ultimately exhausted, government policies accommodated Taiwan (China)'s entry into the technological era of the 1970s and 1980s. During the past four decades of a signally successful transition growth effort, public policies in East Asia have consistently accommodated the changing needs of the economy, rather than guide its path directly. Copyright 1995 by Oxford University Press.