ORF, Fudan University to study rural economies and governance practices

New Delhi, July 31 (ANI): In a novel initiative, research institutes of India and China have agreed to undertake a two-year joint research project on rural political economies and governance practices in both the countries.

The project named "Innovation and Entrepreneurship in China and India in relation with Grassroots Democracy and Governance" will be undertaken by Observer Research Foundation (ORF), the New Delhi headquartered public policy think tank and the Fudan Institute for Advanced Study in Social Sciences (Fudan-IAS), Fudan University, Shanghai, China.

The project will attempt to understand how local governance practices in both India and China have helped or hindered innovation and economic development at the grassroots level.

It will examine case studies of rural political economies in both the countries and their influence on innovation and local entrepreneurship in India and China, which have different political and governance structure.

The agreement on this two-year joint project has been signed by Sunjoy Joshi, Head of Observer Research Foundation and Deng Zhenglai, Dean of Fudan-IAS, in Shanghai.

The project intends to discover the differences in the political, socio-economic, cultural and policy matrix and examine whether there can be identified best practices which can possibly be recommended and adopted in both the countries.

The project will utilize classic macro-economic models to establish common economic framework for case studies to examine some of the more contentious issues in understanding political economies.

The study will also examine the benefits and costs of investing in village level industries and training programmes and also the ways in which FDI can be attracted.

The prevalence of corruption in India and China and the checks and balances to counter them will also be studied by the joint research project.

A case study approach will be used to illustrate how both India and China, two countries with world's two largest populations, rapidly growing economies and increasing global ambitions, have witnessed challenges of internal development and local governance on one hand and experienced successful instances of micro enterprises, entrepreneurship and innovation on the other within the same landscape.

The project will examine how certain innovations enhance the capabilities of the local populace and whether grassroots level organizations that have brought about tangible change can be emulated elsewhere.

The project will examine why India and China have been able to achieve economic development at the local level by focusing on local governance and policies, innovative practices and entrepreneurship in private and collective sectors and grassroots democracy and governance. (ANI)