Vietnam and China’s Civil Service Merit-based Policies: A Comparative Analysis from the Policy Transfer and Historical Institutionalism Approaches

Meritocratic principles have been adopted in China and Vietnam as the main elements
of their civil service reform. This study finds that there are considerable parallels in the meritbased
policies of the two countries, despite the fact that Vietnam’s civil service legal reforms are
almost five years behind China’s. Using policy transfer theory in conjunction with historical
institutionalism, this study argues that the institutional, political, and cultural similarities and
connections between the two countries are drivers of Vietnam’s pragmatic approach to policy
transfer from China. This study also highlights the significance of policy transfer and historical
institutionalism in comparative public policy study.