People talk about China a lot these days. And one of the subjects that keeps them talking about is how the nation can sustain itself.

Merchants, investors, China's neighbours, and in fact all nations with important interests in China want to see the country maintain its course of development and steer clear of trouble.

The country's market-oriented reforms have been going on for almost three decades.

China's rise is an event the world has never seen before, with both known and unknown risks involved in the process. Those who doubt China's sustainability tend to point to the fact that the massive changes are unprecedented and unique.

But there is nothing wrong in being unique. In the business world, there is no telling whether being unique involves more risks than just following a well-worn path. Sometimes, being unique makes a company much more effective in competition.

In fact, several hundred years ago, the rise of modern industry in Western Europe and North America was also unique in the world's history. Max Weber, a German philosopher who was an authority on related research, once argued it was a process that other nations could hardly repeat. What he should have said is that each historical change is destined to be in a class of its own.

So it is not sensible to simply argue how unique China's change is. Few Westerners could have imagined a transition led by a Communist Party from a revolutionary society to a market economy. But this is exactly what China has gone through.

The key is to look at the driving forces of the Chinese change, most importantly the people factor.

Recent market surveys show consumers' confidence in their rising incomes and the effectiveness of the reform policies. These surveys shouldn't be interpreted as of mere commercial significance. For indirectly they also show a shared political will, the will to keep the Chinese reform on track.

Indeed, the current changes are the best times the Chinese people have seen since the Opium War in the mid-19th century, if not even further back. Although there are large numbers of poor and needy people in China, most families have benefited from the reform, both in material wealth and personal rights.

Many people believe a responsible and effective government plus a market economy can best serve their interests, as can be seen from debates in the national and local people's congresses.

People are not scared of difficulties, and are willing to make sacrifices for a better tomorrow, as can be seen from the young workers on assembly lines in the coastal cities, most of whom are immigrants from distant farms.

People are pleased to explore the opportunities the changes have brought them, as can be seen from the millions of new factories and new services launched by private proprietors.

People are willing to learn, not just the textbook knowledge of science and technology, but the practices of management from overseas colleagues. And every investor in China can see this.

China is a society that is growing with its economy. And therein lies its best source of sustainability.

(China Daily May 18, 2005)