The 3rd International Conference on Poverty Alleviation and Child Development

 Hosted by the CDRF, the 3rd International Conference on Poverty Alleviation and Child Development was held in Beijing from October 18th to 19th, 2012. Over one hundred people participated in the conference including policy makers from education, health and other government authorities, grass-root practitioners as well as scholars and experts from around the world. Discussions were held on global issue of advancing child development and eliminating poverty.

Professor James J. Heckman, Nobel Laureate in Economics, attended and spoke at the conference. He pointed out that investment in disadvantaged children with poor parenting environment would yield the highest social return, which is of strategic significance in increasing social productivity, promoting social equity and eliminating poverty from the root. He stressed the significance of early development and argued that preventive measures are more effective than remedial ones, and more attention should be paid to the source of inequity so as to reduce it. Professor Heckman also emphasized that while efforts is made to raise education quality, the cultivation of cognitive competence and characters should not be ignored.

Professor Amartya Sen, another Nobel Laureate in Economics, recognized in his speech CDRF’s efforts to improve the nutrition of poor rural Chinese children. He also acknowledged India’s progress in school feeding and was willing to share the experience with China for common progress.

At the conference, Professor Amartya Sen were officially invited to join CDRF’s Center for Child Development as senior advisors, and would cooperate with CDRF in future researches.

Professor Wang Luolin, Vice President of CDRF, offers Professor Amartya Sen the letter of employment.