First Five Year Plan, 1952-56 Flashcards
What were the aims of the First Five Year Plan?
- High rates of growth in heavy industry.
- Investment in advanced technology.
- Construction of modern industrial plants.
- Self sufficiency for China
- High levels of grain procurement to feel the industrial workers.
- To move further towards a socialist society.
How did the USSR support the First Five Year Plan?
In 1950 the USSR agreed to provide China with economic resilience through the use of loans and advisors. 10,000 economic advisors were sent to China.
Successes: What was the annual growth rate for the First Five Year Plan? What was the industrial growth rate?
The annual growth rate averaged at 16%. Industrial output grew 15.4% per year.
Successes: Which industrial product was the most successful?
Bicycles.
Successes: How much did the industrial working class grow by? How did their standard of living improve?
They had greater job security as work was guaranteed all year round.
Successes: How did the organisation of industry under this plan help support the CCP’s ideological vision?
Greater urbanisation meant the CCP heightened it’s influence and people were completely controlled by the Party.
Failures: Why was dependency on USSR loans a concern?
The USSR had a high interest rate that China could not keep up with.
Failure: What was the annual agriculture growth rate? Why was this a concern?
Agricultural output only grew by 2.1% per year. This was a sharp decline from the 14.1% between 1949-52.
Failure: What skills did China still lack?
China lacked skills to be put in positions of power and so, lacked authority.
Failure: What was the standard of living like for peasants? How were the lives of urban workers restricted?
- The standard of living was poor, especially for rural peasants.
- Farmers were forced to sell their grain at low prices.
- There wasn’t enough food imported into cities to feed workers.
- There was little to buy in shops.
- Little investment in healthcare.
- The supply of consumer goods were low.
