Science, innovation and economic development in East Asia: lessons for Latin America

In present times, China attracts the interest of the whole world. The Asiatic country has had an amazing economic growth in the last three decades. In order to understand Chinese development, it is necessary to study the history of East Asia during last century. Everything began in Japan, where, after 1945, a deep transformation in economical and technological structures took place. Between 1945 and 1970, Japan economics had the best possible conditions and lived a "virtuous circle". Japan constitutes a challenge for orthodox neoliberal economy, as it did everything "in the wrong way" according to the theory, but it has been the second world economy for decades. The example of Japan and Asiatic "industrial cycles" helps us to understand what happened in other countries, such as South Korea, Taiwan and, in recent years, the People's Republic of China, with a National Innovation System to be considered as an example for many countries. Deng Xiaoping's "Four Modernizations" (one of which is science and technology) led to the current impressive Chinese technology parks, where universities and companies work together. In sum, it is interesting to study the example of East Asia, especially China, as a comparison for Latin American models of regional integration and scientific and technological development.