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From agrarian economy to global superpower in half a centuryChinas transformation has been an economic success story unlike any other.

Today, China is the worlds second largest economy, making up 16% of $86 trillion global GDP in nominal terms. If you adjust numbers for purchasing power parity (PPP), the Chinese economy has already been the worlds largest since 2014.

The upward trajectory over the last 70 years has been filled with watershed moments, strategic directives, and shocking tragedies and all of this can be traced back to the founding of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) on October 1st, 1949.

The Chinese Civil War (19271949) between the Republic of China (ROC) and the Communist Party of China (CPC) caused a fractal split in the nations leadership. The CPC emerged victorious, and mainland China was established as the PRC.

Communist leader Mao Zedong set out a few chief goals for the PRC: to overhaul land ownership, to reduce social inequality, and to restore the economy after decades of war. The first State Planning Commission and Chinas first 5-year plan were introduced to achieve these goals.

Todays timely chart looks back on seven decades of notable events and policies that helped shape the country China has become. The base data draws from a graphic by Bert Hofman, the World Banks Country Director for China and other Asia-Pacific regions.

Mao Zedongs tenure as Chairman of the PRC triggered sweeping changes for the country.

19531957: First 5-Year PlanThe programs aim was to boost Chinas industrialization. Steel production grew four-fold in four years, from 1.3 million tonnes to 5.2 million tonnes. Agricultural output also rose, but it couldnt keep pace with industrial production.

19581962: Great Leap ForwardThe campaign emphasized Chinas agrarian-to-industrial transformation, via a communal farming system. However, the plan failedcausing an economic breakdown and the deaths of tens of millions in the Great Chinese Famine.

19591962: Lushan Conference and 7,000 Cadres meetingTop leaders in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) met to create detailed policy frameworks for the PRCs future.

19661976: Great Proletarian Cultural RevolutionMao Zedong attempted to regain power and support after the failures of the Great Leap Forward. However, this was another plan that backfired, causing millions more deaths by violence and again crippling the Chinese economy.

1971: Joined the United NationsThe PRC replaced the ROC (Taiwan) as a permanent member of the United Nations. This addition also made it one of only five members of the UN Security Councilincluding the UK, the U.S., France, and Russia.

1972: President Nixons visitAfter 25 years of radio silence, Richard Nixon was the first sitting U.S. President to step foot into the PRC. This helped re-establish diplomatic relations between the two nations.

19761977: Mao Zedong Death, and Two WhateversAfter Mao Zedongs passing, the interim government promised to resolutely uphold whatever policy decisions Chairman Mao made, and unswervingly follow whatever instructions Chairman Mao gave.

1979: One-Child PolicyThe government enacted an aggressive birth-planning program to control the size of the countrys population, which it viewed as growing too fast.

From 1980 onward, China worked on opening up its markets to the outside world, and closing the inequality gap.

19801984: Special Economic Zones (SEZs) establishedSeveral cities were designated SEZs, and provided with measures such as tax incentives to attract foreign investment. Today, the economies of cities like Shenzhen have grown to rival the GDPs of entire countries.

1981: National Household Responsibility System implementedIn the Mao era, quotas were set on how many goods farmers could produce, shifting the responsibility of profits to local managers instead. This rapidly increased the standard of living, and the quota system spread from agriculture into other sectors.

1989: Coastal Development StrategyPost-Mao leadership saw the coastal region as the potential catalyst for the entire countrys modernization.

19891991: Post-Tiananmen retrenchmentEarly 1980s economic reforms had mixed results, and the growing anxiety eventually culminated in a series of protests. After tanks rolled into Tiananmen Square in 1989, the government retrenched itself by initially attempting to roll back economic reforms and liberalization. The countrys annual growth plunged from 8.6% between 1979-1989 to 6.5% between 1989-1991.

19901991: Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges openCombined, the Shanghai (SSE) and Shenzhen (SZSE) stock exchanges are worth over $8.5 trillion in total market capitalization today.

1994: Shandong Huaneng lists on the NYSEThe power company was the first PRC enterprise to list on the NYSE. This added a new N-shares group to the existing Chinese capital market options of A-shares, B-shares, and H-shares.

19941996: National 8-7 Poverty Reduction PlanChina successfully lifted over 400 million poor people out of poverty between 1981 and 2002 through this endeavor.

1996: Grasp the Large, Let Go of the SmallEfforts were made to downsize the state sector. Policy makers were urged to maintain control over state-owned enterprises to grasp the large. Meanwhile, the central government was encouraged to relinquish control over smaller SOEs, or let go of the small.

1997: Urban Dibao ()Chinas social safety net went through restructuring from 1993, and became a nationwide program after strong success in Shanghai.

1997-1999: Hong Kong and Macao handover, Asian Financial CrisisChina was largely unscathed by the regional financial crisis, thanks to the RMB () currencys non-convertibility. Meanwhile, the PRC regained sovereignty of Hong Kong and Macau back from the UK and Portugal, respectively.

1999: Western Development StrategyThe Open Up the West program built out 6 provinces, 5 autonomous regions, and 1 municipalityeach becoming integral to the Chinese economy.

Chinas entry to the World Trade Organization, and the Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor (QFII) program which let foreign investors participate in the PRCs stock exchanges contributed to the countrys economic growth.

Source: CNBC

2006: Medium-term Plan for Scientific DevelopmentThe PRC State Councils 15-year plan outlines that 2.5% or more of national GDP should be devoted to research and development by 2020.

2008-2009: Global Financial CrisisThe PRC experienced only a mild economic slowdown during the crisis. The countrys GDP growth in 2007 was a staggering 14.2%, but this dropped to 9.7% and 9.5% respectively in the two years following.

2013: Belt and Road InitiativeChinas ambitious plans to develop road, rail, and sea routes across 152 countries is scheduled for completion by 2049in time for the PRCs 100th anniversary. More than $900 billion is budgeted for these infrastructure projects.

2015: Made in China 2025The PRC refuses to be the worlds factory any longer. In response, it will invest nearly $300 billion to boost its manufacturing capabilities in high-tech fields like pharmaceuticals, aerospace, and robotics.

Despite the recent ongoing trade dispute with the U.S. and an increasingly aging population, the Chinese growth story seems destined to continue on.

The 70th anniversary of the PRC offers a moment to reflect on the countrys journey from humble beginnings to a powerhouse on the world stage.

Because of Chinas economic success, more and more countries see China as an example to emulate, a model of development that could mean moving from rags to riches within a generation.

Bert Hofman, World Bank

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