Life and Society: Life of Chinese Nationals PDF

# Life and Society: Life of Chinese Nationals ## Focus of Learning - China has a large population. According to the Statistical Communiqué of the People's Republic of China on the 2019 National Economic and Social Development, the total population of the mainland was 1.4 billion in 2019. - The ur...

# Life and Society: Life of Chinese Nationals ## Focus of Learning - China has a large population. According to the Statistical Communiqué of the People's Republic of China on the 2019 National Economic and Social Development, the total population of the mainland was 1.4 billion in 2019. - The urban population comprised 60.6% of the total and rural population comprised 39.4%. Urbanization - After a long period of wars and chaos, mainland residents generally had poor lives in the early days of the People's Republic of China (1949). - In 1978, China implemented a policy of reform and opening up. - Since then, there has been rapid economic development and significant improvement in the lives of urban and rural residents. ## Development in Regions - However, in the early days of reform and opening up, the development strategy focused on the development of southeast coastal region enabled it to develop first. - Such measures, together with geographical and natural conditions, have led to differences in pace in economic development among various provinces on the mainland. - There are differences in residents' living standards between cities, between villages as well as between cities and villages. - The disparity between the urban and rural areas is greater. ### Map of Economic Development in China - **Southeast coastal region** - **Central region** - **Western region** - **Northeastern region** - **Note:** The above division of China's 4 major economic regions does not include information on the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Macao Special Administrative Region and Taiwan. # Chapter 1: An Overview of the Life of Urban and Rural Residents ## 1.1 Work ### A. Work of Urban Residents - Urban residents are mainly involved in secondary industries (including manufacturing and construction, etc) and tertiary industries (service industries). - In the past, manufacturing had the most employed people in cities. - In recent years, its status has been gradually replaced by service industries as the state has adjusted its development strategy to actively promote the development of tertiary industries. - Employers of urban residents are mainly private enterprises, limited liability corporations and state-owned enterprises, while an increasing number of residents are self-employed individuals. - After opening up, many urban residents have worked in enterprises opened by merchants from Hong Kong, Macao or Taiwan as well as from foreign countries. ### Table 1.1: Major Employment Situation of Urban Residents in 2011 and 2019 | Type of Enterprises | Number of Employed People in 2011 (10 thousand) | Number of Employed People in 2019 (10 thousand) | |---|---|---| | State-owned Enterprises | 6,704 |5,473 | | Limited Liability Corporations | 3,269 | 6,608 | | Private Enterprises | 6,912 | 14,567 | | Hong Kong, Macao or Taiwan Funded Units | 932 | 1,157 | | Foreign Funded Units | 1,217 | 1,203 | | Self-employed Individuals | 5,227 | 11,692 | ### B. Work of Rural Residents - Rural residents are mainly involved in primary industries and most of them earn a living by farming. - When the household responsibility system was implemented in 1980, a large labour force existed in villages. - With the development of township and village enterprises, a great number of excess labour has been attracted to work in secondary and tertiary industries there. - In addition, some of the excess rural labour force has chosen to work in private enterprises or to become self-employed individuals. - The number of people working in these two types of enterprises has been on the rise in recent years. - Prosperity and better economic development in cities has also attracted a large number of rural residents to leave villages and work in cities to earn more, especially the new generation of rural residents. - These rural residents who are involved in secondary and tertiary industries are called 'rural migrant workers'. ## 1.2 Income and Consumption ### A. Income and Consumption of Urban Residents - After reform and opening up, most urban residents have directly benefited from the significant and continuous growth of the national economy. - Their incomes have also been growing continuously. - Especially from 1990 onwards, there has been obvious growth in the income of urban residents. - The living standards of most urban residents have risen along with their income growth. - Their focus has shifted from 'eating and housing' to multi-layered consumption of 'wearing and transportation'. - They also care more and more about health and are spending more on health care. ### B. Income and Consumption of Rural Residents - Rural reform has increased the rural residents' channels of income. - Together with the elimination of agricultural tax and the introduction of a series of subsidies in recent years, the income of rural residents has increased. - In addition, their consumption abilities have been enhanced. - Their quality of life has gradually improved. - Some rural families are no longer in poverty. - They do not worry about food or clothing and have gradually become wealthy. - Living standards of rural families who can get rich first are similar to that of urban families. - These families pursue diverse enjoyment through consumption. - However, the income of rural residents is lower and the income growth rate is also slower than urban residents. - They cannot buy as much as urban residents. - Rural residents are inclined to consume cheaper items and not as many varieties ## 1.3 Education ### A. Education Situation of Urban Residents - Many cities are prosperous now and there are all kinds of schools there. - Apart from government schools, there are also various private schools. - Schools in cities have better teachers, equipment, facilities and teaching resources than those in villages. - As the income of urban residents increases, families can afford to send their children to further their studies in higher education institutions. - There are also more educational opportunities in cities. - Students who are not admitted to universities can study in vocational schools or technical schools to learn vocational or specialised skills. - They can even attend courses through the Internet to obtain higher education qualifications or working skills. - Most high-income families in cities will send their children to study abroad. - This is a trend nowadays. - As the national economy has taken off, a rising number of students who studied abroad have chosen to return to the mainland and take up jobs in big cities. - They are named 'overseas returnees'. - They generally have undergraduate, masters or doctorate qualifications, making them the highest qualified groups in cities. ### B. Education Situation of Rural Residents - Since 1986, the state has implemented the 9-year free compulsory education (6 years of primary level and 3 years of junior secondary level) policy. - It has benefited rural residents. - The number enrolling in school has gradually increased. - The illiteracy rate has gradually decreased at the same time. - Some university students from villages are eligible for an urban resident hukou. - They enjoy the same welfare as urban residents upon graduation. - Many rural children study hard to fight for a chance to receive higher education, in order to change their fate with knowledge. - However, government investment in rural education is not adequate. - Take education expenditure 2019 as an example. - The average education expenditure in the budget for common rural primary school students was RMB 800 less than the national average of primary school students; for common rural junior secondary school students, it was RMB 2,000 less than the national average of junior secondary school students. - In reality, most villages have a limited number of teachers, varied teaching quality and shabby facilities.