Who are the `Littlest Tigers`

Littlest Tigers

With rapid increase of GDP (Gross Domestic Product , the economies of Taiwan , Singapore , Hong Kong and South Korea have earned the reputation of being the Four Little Tigers ' of Asia . These four countries primarily under the influence of Chinese culture had shown rapid industrialization in the decades of 1960s and the 1990s . Since the twenty-first century these four states have come under the category of `developed ' states

These countries , which are now developed , had adopted an export-oriented pattern of development . Production for domestic use was discouraged by way

of high tariffs . This , accompanied by emphasis on public education , went a long way in ensuring sustained rate of double-digit growth for many decades . Education enabled these countries to produce cheap , but productive workforce , which became their strength Egalitarianism was encouraged by way of land reforms , which ensured that peasants were never left dissatisfied

The above-mentioned measures brought a lot of economic benefit to these countries . They soon discovered that they had a favorable balance of trade . Though these countries had mostly non-democratic political systems in the initial years , yet they managed to ensure high rate of savings amongst their citizens . This was possible by focusing exports mainly to richer industrialized countries

`Tigers ' symbolize freedom , strength and bravery . These four nations in spite of poor economic conditions , had been bold enough to allow a completely free economic system . Their openness and manpower produced great results . Ranked according to GDP South Korea , Taiwan , Hong Kong and Singapore are placed at 12th , 21st , 36th and 44th respectively According to the Heritage Foundation 's Index of Economic Freedom published in 2007 : Hong Kong , Singapore , Taiwan and South Korea hold the 1st , 2nd , 26th and 36th ranks respectively

References

Asia 's Four Little Tigers : a comparison of the role of education in their development

http /www .ingentaconnect .com /content /routledg /cced /1996 /00000 001 /art00006

Industrialization and Welfare : The Case of the Four Little Tigers by James Midgley

http /www .blackwell-synergy .com /doi /abs /10 .1111 /j .1467-9515 .1986 .tb002 53 .x

`Four Tigers ' offer varied opportunities for U .S . firms

http /www .bizjournals .com /sanjose /stories /1996 /09 /30 /focus2 .html

Littlest Tigers PAGE 2...