China says trying to tackle aging population problem: Knowledge Driven Revolution

China said Tuesday that creating welfare programs for its soaring numbers of elderly is a national priority, but warned that will be a daunting challenge in a rapidly graying society.

China faces an acute demographic crunch due to birth-control programs that limit most urban couples to one child, which will cause the ratio of working people to retirees to drop sharply.

The government has launched pension, health care and other programs for the elderly, the Cabinet said in a report on aging. It didn't mention any new initiatives.

"China regards the establishment of an old-age security system corresponding to the level of the country's socio-economic development and aging population as an important task and a priority area," it said.

But it cautioned that with the population of elderly people rising by 3 percent a year, paying for such programs will strain government finances.

"However, as a developing country with a population of 1.3 billion, China still has problems and shortcomings in the work concerning elderly people," the report said.

The number of elderly Chinese people is expected to top 200 million by 2015 and 280 million by 2025, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

Some 30 percent of the population would be classified as elderly by 2050, the Communist Party newspaper People's Daily said in October. But it said it was too early to lift restrictive childbearing policies.

"Given the absence of adequate social security provision, the economic and social consequences of aging will present a massive challenge to the Chinese government," said Bob Ash, a professor at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London who studies the issue.

"The financial burden on the state to meet the needs of the aging population will be enormous all the more so, given that China is unlikely to attain the status of a rich country in the foreseeable future," he said.

Rapid economic development has also weakened traditional thinking that requires sons to support parents in their old age, while daughters are expected to aid only their in-laws, Ash said.

Rural families are especially dependent on children to support them in old age, and the report said 60 percent of China's elderly live in the countryside.

The government "has begun to study the establishment of an old-age social security system in rural areas in order to guarantee the basic livelihood of the elderly people there," the report said.

The problem of caring for a rapidly expanding aging population also comes as the communist welfare system disintegrates under the pressure of economic reforms, with massive layoffs from state-owned enterprises and a lack of social safety nets for migrant workers.

Read Today's Knowledge Driven News
HOME George Bush Sr. The New World Order Parrot Party Police, Party Courts and Concentration Camps P3s, Nazis and Polite Canadian Fascism The Ghost in the Machine - The Forced Chemical Evolution of Man Rouge States and the 9/11 Truth Terrorists Canadians Should Pay NOT to be Poisoned: NDP V for Vendetta - R for Reality Canadian Bird Flu Pandemic Looming ? Shill of the Week: Stephan Harper Aspartame: The Sweetest Killer Chicken Little Terrorist of the Week: Creating Fake Terrorists Shill of the Week: Paul Martin The Number 1 Reason YOU became a Slave	China says trying to tackle aging population problem AP December 13, 2006 China said Tuesday that creating welfare programs for its soaring numbers of elderly is a national priority, but warned that will be a daunting challenge in a rapidly graying society. China faces an acute demographic crunch due to birth-control programs that limit most urban couples to one child, which will cause the ratio of working people to retirees to drop sharply. The government has launched pension, health care and other programs for the elderly, the Cabinet said in a report on aging. It didn't mention any new initiatives. "China regards the establishment of an old-age security system corresponding to the level of the country's socio-economic development and aging population as an important task and a priority area," it said. But it cautioned that with the population of elderly people rising by 3 percent a year, paying for such programs will strain government finances. "However, as a developing country with a population of 1.3 billion, China still has problems and shortcomings in the work concerning elderly people," the report said. The number of elderly Chinese people is expected to top 200 million by 2015 and 280 million by 2025, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. Some 30 percent of the population would be classified as elderly by 2050, the Communist Party newspaper People's Daily said in October. But it said it was too early to lift restrictive childbearing policies. "Given the absence of adequate social security provision, the economic and social consequences of aging will present a massive challenge to the Chinese government," said Bob Ash, a professor at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London who studies the issue. "The financial burden on the state to meet the needs of the aging population will be enormous all the more so, given that China is unlikely to attain the status of a rich country in the foreseeable future," he said. Rapid economic development has also weakened traditional thinking that requires sons to support parents in their old age, while daughters are expected to aid only their in-laws, Ash said. Rural families are especially dependent on children to support them in old age, and the report said 60 percent of China's elderly live in the countryside. The government "has begun to study the establishment of an old-age social security system in rural areas in order to guarantee the basic livelihood of the elderly people there," the report said. The problem of caring for a rapidly expanding aging population also comes as the communist welfare system disintegrates under the pressure of economic reforms, with massive layoffs from state-owned enterprises and a lack of social safety nets for migrant workers. Read the full article here Broken Link? If the link to the original article is broken or has been altered you can view the article by clicking here. About KDR \| \| Home \| \| Weekly Features Archive	Weekly Features Archive
		What Is Wrong With Canada ? Recent 9-11 News Suppressed by the Media Aspartame: The Sweetest Killer The Number 1 Reason YOU became a Slave Knowledge Driven Look at Your Favourite Canadian Political Parties
		October November December 2006 26 27 28 29 30 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Weekly Features 2006 2005 Read Today's Knowledge Driven News
		Counter
Copyright � 2005-6 KnowledgeDrivenRevolution.com