‘Where is China’s Economy Headed?’ Public Lecture by Professor Justin Lin Yifu

中文 

 

On 15 August, the Nanyang Centre for Public Administration (NCPA) hosted a public lecture titled "Where is China's Economy Headed?" featuring Professor Justin Lin Yifu, a renowned Chinese economist, former Senior Vice President of the World Bank, and Dean of Institute of New Structural Economics, Dean of Institute of South-South Cooperation and Development and Professor and Honorary Dean of National School of Development at Peking University.

The event, co-organised by NCPA and the School of Social Sciences (SSS), Department of Economics at NTU was packed to a full capacity with over 350 participants, including students, educators, alumni, trainees from Shandong University, Jilin Provincial Department of Education and Gansu Provincial Department of Education, as well as members of the public.

The lecture was moderated by Associate Professor Laura Wu Guiying from SSS, Economics Department, with an opening speech delivered by Professor Liu Hong, Associate Vice-President, (International) and NCPA Director (Research & Executive Education).

In his welcome address, Prof Liu Hong highlighted the strong ties between NTU, NCPA and Prof Lin noting that Prof Lin was the inaugural speaker for NCPA’s Distinguished Speakers Series launched in 2017 to commemorate NCPA's 25th anniversary. This series has evolved into a leading platform for academic discourse, showcasing distinguished leaders from both the public and private sectors, who are internationally acclaimed in their respective fields.

In his keynote address, Prof. Lin discussed several prevailing views on China's economy and shared his perspectives. Many attendees resonated with and were inspired by Prof. Lin’s relentless pursuit of clarity, his approach to understanding economic phenomena with open-mindedness and pragmatism, and his emphasis on focusing on core realities rather than preconceived theories.

During the panel discussion with Prof Tan Kong Yam, Emeritus Professor, SSS and Assoc Prof Feng Qu, Head of Economics, SSS, NTU, Prof Lin explored issues related to ASEAN trade and investment, industrial policies, and the prospects for Chinese enterprises abroad. The Q&A session covered a range of topics, including the employment prospects for graduates, local industrial policies in China, Southeast Asian countries' views on China, and regional economic cooperation.