Both the Meiji Restoration and the Self-Sustaining Movement were modernizing movements which took shape in the context of the Age of Imperialism. For Japan and China, respectively, both movements represented a sharp transition away from traditional modes of politics and government to a more Western, industrialized model, in the hopes of bringing their countries onto more even footing with the Western imperial powers.
Furthermore, both movements ultimately had their origins in moments of national humiliation. An argument can be made that the seeds for the Meiji Restoration were laid by the arrival of Commodore Perry's fleet in Tokyo Harbor, in 1853. This scene represented a striking display of Western military power and the Shogunate's inability to answer this show of force. This encounter would be followed by a series of unequal trading treaties with various Western powers. With the Shogunate's power and authority weakened, Japan eventually collapsed into civil war, out of which rose the Meiji Government.
Likewise, we can assert that China's attempts at industrialization represented a response against Chinese humiliations during the Age of Imperialism. Consider the history of the Opium Wars and the Treaty of Nanjing (1842). Defeat at the hand of Britain would be followed by further humiliations, as China would be divided up by various European powers, who would each set up their own zones of influence within the country. Just as the Meiji Restoration was ultimately an attempt to strengthen Japanese power in the face of imperialist expansion (ultimately using the tools of the West to do so), the same can be said of the Self-Strengthening Movement.
However, despite the similarities in context and intention, the two projects cannot be said to have been equally effective. The Meiji Restoration was an extraordinarily successful project of political, social and economic reform, and it established Japan as a modern industrialized state. What followed was a rapid expansion in power, as Japan turned toward imperialism and began building an empire of its own. This dramatic increase in Japanese power would be confirmed before the world with Japan's victory over Russia in the Russo Japanese War. The Self-Strengthening Movement, on the other hand, would prove much less successful, and it would take China much longer to truly re-establish itself as a world power.
The Meiji Restoration and the Self-Strengthening Movement prove that all military-industrial plans for modernization aren't created equal.
The Meiji Restoration catapulted Japan into modernity and helped established a clear national identity that embraced the ideas of the West while still holding firmly to Japanese tradition.
Before the Choshu and Satsuma clans joined forces and took over, the Tokugawa shoguns had ruled Japan for 265 years. They were peaceful years, but they weren't sustainable. More specifically, the Meiji Restoration took place because
The feudal system was on its deathbed.
Japan was feeling pressure from the rest of the world to jump into the 1860s—or at least the nineteenth century.
The Japanese people were tired of feeling vulnerable and defenseless. When Commodore Perry arrived with giant warships in 1853 and forced Japan to resume trade with America, Japan wanted to strengthen their military right away.
Once the Tokugawa era was officially over, feudalism came to an end, and the country began to modernize quickly. Japan increased its military might and established a centralized, Western-style constitutional monarchy with a cabinet system. They lifted the ban on Western cultural influences and trade and moved the nation's capital from Kyoto to Edo, which was renamed Tokyo. Universal education was established, and industrialization became a national focus, resulting in improvements to Japan's national communications and transportation systems.
The Self-Strengthening Movement in China didn't go as smoothly. Like the Meiji Restoration, China's Self-Strengthening Movement was a reform movement intended to make China over as a modern nation with a focus on military strength and industry. Unlike the Meiji Restoration, the Self-Strengthening Movement wasn't the product of a government overthrow. Proponents of Self-Strengthening wanted to use Western military and industrial ideas to jump into the modern era while still protecting the existing Qing dynasty and its Confucian values.
Predictably, this half-step toward progress posed a big problem. While the Self-Strengthening Movement did lead to some improvements in things like infrastructure and railways, the fact that it didn't have much support from the government meant that it lacked sufficient resources to effect real, lasting change.
Additionally, the Self-Strengthening Movement was hampered by China's decentralized government. When military projects were successful—like the building of a munitions plant, for example—they were controlled by provincial loyalties, not national loyalty. Warlords assumed control of military outposts. As a result, China grew increasingly fractured, and—especially in light of Japan's successes—proved that, in order for a country to modernize its industry and its military, it has to modernize socio-politically, too.
http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/special/japan_1750_meiji.htm
https://alphahistory.com/chineserevolution/self-strengthening-movement/
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