China is clamping down on “image projects” as the country’s financial woes continue. Analysts believe that image projects reflect the absurdity of the ruling party. Xiongan New Area, for instance, a mass new city project initiated by Communist leader Xi Jinping, has turned out to be a great waste of resources.
Under the rule of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officials from the central government and local offices regularly engage in image projects, i.e., infrastructure projects that are impressive in appearance but have very little practical use. These image projects, intended to “ strengthen the political base of the CCP,” are a fast track to promotion for the officials and are therefore also known as performance projects.
