Writing about China's rapid advancement in training its youth in high-grade science and technology takes me back to 1976, when I was appointed to lead the World Bank's rapidly developing programme. The Bank's involvement covered both policy reform and financing of projects, the Chinese considered vital for the development of their economy. The dam on the mighty Yangtze River at a place called 'three gorges' would double the production of electric power in the country. I was appointed the chairman of the three-member committee that was to examine and approve the feasibility report of this immensely large hydel project.

The World Bank then placed significant emphasis on ensuring that people displaced by large projects were properly resettled. The three gorges project was to displace 1.1 million people, but the Chinese had not provided for them to be settled. On the World Bank's advice, I refused to approve the feasibility report until proper resettlement measures were ensured.

The Chinese said that they lacked people who could design such a programme and asked the World Bank for help in providing needed expertise. The Bank sent in its experts, and the programme they designed created space for them in the country's western provinces, particularly the Autonomous Region of Xinjiang bordering Pakistan. The region needed sea access, which Pakistan offered via the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Since that time, roughly half a century ago, China has invested heavily in developing facilities to train people in........

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