Think tanks as supplement to policymaking

Chinese think tanks, be they State-sponsored or private, are inching forward in the global intellectual race. Nine of these made it to the world's top 175 think-tank list prepared recently by the Lauder Institute of University of Pennsylvania. The university report says the United States has the largest number of think tanks (1,835) and China the second largest (435).

The ranking gives an idea of the effectual buildup of Chinese think tanks and how they supplement policymaking. Thanks partly to the concerted endorsement of the central and local governments, China's policies can be rather effectively implemented at all levels with the needed political motivation. China's expanding high-speed railway network, which has greatly changed how Chinese people travel, could well serve as an example of administrative efficiency.

However, without proper consultation with those in the know and the active participation of think tanks, a well-intentioned policy could become ineffective at the expense of public funds.