Tofu-dreg project

The phrase was coined by Zhu Rongji, the former premier of the People's Republic of China, on a 1998 visit to Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province to describe poorly built levees in the Yangtze River. In China, the term tofu dregs (the pieces left over after making tofu) is widely used as a metaphor for shoddy work, hence the implication that a "tofu-dreg project" is a poorly executed project. On 15 May 2008, Geoffrey York of The Globe and Mail reported that poorly constructed buildings were called "tofu buildings", and that planners replaced steel rods with thin iron wires for reinforcing concrete, used bad cement, and used a lower amount of bricks than needed. ==Examples==

2008 Sichuan earthquake was among the many schools in the disaster region that suffered heavy structural damage. During the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, many schoolhouses collapsed; resulting in the death of students. These buildings have been used to exemplify tofu-dreg projects. The collapses were linked to allegations of corruption in the construction of Chinese schools. {{Cquote|…School construction is the worst. First, there's not enough capital. Schools in poor areas have small budgets and, unlike schools in the cities, they can't collect huge fees, so they're pressed for money. With construction, add in exploitation by government officials, education officials, school managers, etc. and you can imagine what's left over for the actual building of schools. When earthquake prevention standards are raised, government departments, major businesses, etc. will all appraise and reinforce their buildings. But these schools with their 70s-era buildings, no one pays attention to them. Because of this, the older school buildings are suffer[ing] from inadequate protection while the new buildings have been shoddily constructed. The state-controlled media has largely ignored the tofu-dregs schoolhouses, under directives from the propaganda bureau's instructions. Parents, volunteers, and journalists who have questioned authorities have been intimidated or arrested. To quash the issue, riot police officers have broken up protests by parents, cordons have been set up around the schools in question, and reportage simply stopped. Outside of China Chinese-owned construction companies were involved in the following overseas projects, often as part of the Belt and Road Initiative: • Collapse of Thailand State Audit Office building • Novi Sad railway station canopy collapse • Sigiri Bridge, Kenya ==References==