Vast study seeks to tackle China's age challenge
Unprecedented survey of 17,000 people seeks to assess impact of social reforms on the lives of people in the world's largest ageing society
A landmark study on ageing population on the mainland hopes to provide answers to the raging debate if China will grow rich before it grows old and if the country’s nascent social safety net is equal to the tasks ahead.
The China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) polled 17,708 individuals from 10,287 households in 28 Chinese provinces between May 2011 and March 2012. The sheer scope and detail of the data collected, ranging from socio-economic aspect to physical and psychological health, is unprecedented in China.
We don't know yet what the real impact of all that is on people's lives
The first major report from this baseline survey will be released today by Peking University in Beijing, which conducted the research together with other foreign institutes.
“China is going through a period where there is enormous [social] reform going on. Health insurance is being provided to people, government pensions are just starting to come into play,” says Professor James P. Smith, a member of CHARLS’ international research team and the Distinguished Chair in Labour Markets and Demographic Studies at RAND Corporation.
“We don’t know yet what the real impact of all that is on people’s lives – and this is why doing CHARLS now is so important.”