15 Socialist Countries that Have Succeeded

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7. Netherlands

Gini Coefficient: 28.5

Netherlands is located in northwestern Europe. It has a significant amount of socialist frameworks in place. The economy is mixed and the market enjoys significant levels of freedom but there are regulations in place that are socialist in orientation. For instance, young people get paid less than older people according to etuc.org. 

There’s a robust healthcare system in place. Policies have been enacted in the market for parents to take paid leaves in case of pregnancy or childbirth. Minimum wages have been set in the country to prevent people from falling into poverty. The Netherlands has a high innovation score of 58.80. It ranks 4th in the global competitive index and has a high social progress score of 91.06.

Some of Netherlands’ biggest publicly traded companies include Airbus SE (EPA: AIR.PA), Royal Dutch Shell plc (AMS: RDSA.AS), Exor N.V. (BIT: EXO.MI), Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize N.V. (AMS: AD.AS) and ING Groep N.V. (AMS: INGA.AS). 

6. China

Gini Coefficient: 38.5

China undoubtedly grabs one of the best spots on the list of 15 socialist countries that have succeeded for a lot of reasons despite a relatively higher Gini Coefficient, lower innovation and social progress than some other countries on the list of 15 socialist countries that have succeeded. China grabs the spot for two reasons: the speed with which it has climbed the economic ladder, becoming the 2nd largest economy in the world and its proximity to textbook socialism. 

The People’s Republic of China was almost entirely socialist until it opened its economy to the rest of the world in the late 70s. China has a one party system built around meritocracy and long term experimental and strategic economic planning. Socialist pillars in China’s socio-politico-economic system include unemployment insurance, laborer’s compensation insurance, universal healthcare and communal pension funds.

China is not a market economy in the sense of free market capitalism or market socialism. Instead, China relies on strategic state capitalism where it controls how strategic means of production are used. The rationale is to gradually transition from this phase to a fully socialist system through a meritocratic and public welfare political system in what is largely described as the China Model or the Beijing Consensus. 

A stunning achievement of these policies is that China has lifted 800 million of its people out of poverty according to the World Bank. China has an innovation score of 53.50. It has a social progress score of 66.12. China is also home to the 3rd largest smartphone manufacturer, Xiaomi Corporation (OTC: XIACF) when it comes to innovation.

China ranks 28th in global competitiveness and is home to various giant publicly traded companies like Alibaba Group Holding Limited (HKSE: 9988.HK), Tencent Holdings Limited (HKSE: 0700.HK), Pinduoduo Inc. (NASDAQ: PDD), Yum China Holdings Inc. (NYSE: YUMC), Xiaomi Corporation and New Frontier Health Corporation (NYSE: NFH). 133 Chinese companies made it to the fortune 500 list in 2020. Some of these include Alibaba Group Holding Limited (HKSE: 9988.HK), Tencent Holdings Limited (HKSE: 0700.HK) and Xiaomi Corporation.

Chinese companies are also competing with US giants like Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), Facebook, Inc. Common Stock (NASDAQ: FB), Alphabet Inc Class A (NASDAQ: GOOGL), Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA), Twitter Inc (NYSE: TWTR) and Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) in every domain.

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