China Development Report 2020 Released
On the morning of June 11, CDRF held the online launch of China Development Report 2020 - Aging Population: China's Development Trend and Policy Options & expert seminar. The meeting was chaired by CDRF Secretary General Fang Jin, and addressed by CDRF Vice Chairman Lu Mai.
China Development Report is a flagship report of CDRF, focusing on mid- and long-term issues with Chinese economic and social development to provide scientific decision-making basis from a development perspective. The report this time is themed in actively coping with aging population, analyzes in details the current status and trend of the aging population in China, summarizes the challenges and opportunities for the current and future economic and social development, and on such basis, proposes policy options. The project was sponsored by BOC International Holdings Limited, Abbott Trade (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., and Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd.
Lu said in the speech that actively coping with the aging population is critical to future economic and social development; the elderly population is not a burden on the society and social involvement of the elderly need be duly highlighted. In China, the undertakings for the aged have made significant achievements, with urban and rural service systems for the elderly being gradually refined and more and more preferential policies for the elderly in medical care and daily care emerging. The health level of Chinese population has been significantly improved, and demand of the elderly for prevention and health care, medical care and rehabilitation was gradually satisfied. Social insurance has made admirable progress in coverage, but its coordination across the country remained to be promoted.
Authors of the main report, Chen Gong, President of Institute of Population Research, Peking University, and Feng Wenmeng, Director of Research Office of Research Department of Social Development, Development Research Center of the State Council, introduced the main messages of the report. Chen pointed out that the key to actively coping with the aging population lied in modernizing China’s governance system and capacity for governance and polices should be centered on the keyword “governance”; Chinese institutional advantages could provide the basis for shaping an aging social governance system. Besides, he believed it necessary to improve the supply of human resources, utilize the elderly’s human capital, make policies on extending the retirement age in line with Chinese realities, improve the health of the elderly, and encourage their reemployment and social involvement. Feng stressed that the ultimate direction of Chinese elderly service system was establishment of an age-friendly society. He said in the next decade, an important “window period” for us to cope with the aging population, we need serve the overall picture of the modernization strategy and adapt to it proactively. He believed the development of policies should follow the principles of categorized guidance and dynamic adjustment. On the one hand, given that the elderly population was large and significantly different in urban and rural areas and in various regions, policy measures should be categorized by urban and rural areas, regions, sex, education background and health status, and policy objectives should be aligned with demand of different groups. On the other hand, system building need be dynamic and subject to adjustment according to characteristics and demand of the elderly at different stages.
