DAR ES SALAAM, May 21 -- WHEN Chinese Ambassador to Tanzania Chen Mingjian visited the Office of the Treasury Registrar (OTR) this week, the discussions reflected more than growing diplomatic ties between Tanzania and China.

They also highlighted a wider and increasingly important question facing many economies seeking to accelerate industrialisation and improve returns from public investments.

For Tanzania, which is currently implementing reforms aimed at improving the performance of public institutions and maximising returns from government investments, the answer may lie in studying countries that have successfully transformed their state-owned enterprises into drivers of economic growth.

China is one of those countries

During the ...