Great Leap Forward in the People’s Communization Campaign

Abstract

By 1957, China’s economy had changed greatly, with strong recovery, and rapid growth. China overfulfilled most targets in its first Five Year Plan (FYP 1952–57). Productions in most industries surpassed the targets in the first FYP. The output of steel in 1957 was nearly 4 times as much as that in 1952. The grain yield also increased from 164 million tons in 1952 to 195 million tons in 1957, a rate of 19 percent. Electric power jumped from 7.3 billion kW in 1952 to 19.3 billion kW in 1957, exceeding the target of 15.9 billion kW in the FYP (CSY 1983). The success in the first FYP strengthened China’s confidence in its economic development greatly.