Event Details

Dr Mike Gow of Edge Hill University shares his latest research on Xi Jinping's "New Quality Productive Forces"

In 2023, Xi Jinping first made reference to the term New Quality Productive Forces (NQPF). This presentation discusses the NQPF (i) as a concept rooted in Marxism; (ii) as a central tenet of Xi Jinping’s New Era geopolitical and economic strategy, and (iii) how NQPF may be realised. The presentation hopes to clarify the specific meaning of this term in Marxist parlance, avoiding common issues where NQPF is erroneously equated with the means of labour or conflated with the means of production. Such an understanding is crucial to recognising the distinct approach to development in contemporary China. Consideration is then given to the means by which NQPF are being developed through an articulation between the needs to the state and private sector through an analysis of corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives developed by multinational corporations operating in the PRC and, crucially, the Party-State’s co-optation of these CSR initiatives through the distribution of symbolic capital.