Stuart Gietel-Basten | South China Morning Post

Stuart Gietel-Basten

Stuart Gietel-Basten is professor of Public Policy and Social Science at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

OpinionIf China wants more babies, it needs to better understand young people

Rather than castigating young people for being feckless, individualistic and selfish, a more productive approach involves acknowledging they may well have different aspirations from previous generations.

4 Jun 2021 - 4:05AMvideocam

Why China doesn’t need a baby boom, just a skilled population

Children practise feeding babies in Hangzhou in 2017. China’s move to a two-child policy in 2015 has not dramatically increased the birth rate. Photo: Xinhua

Focusing on raising the birth rate is not the perfect answer to China’s ageing population problem. Holistic policies that support parents and improve education for children would be more effective.

17 Feb 2018 - 2:59AM

How can Hong Kong attract more foreign domestic workers?

The Asian Migrants' Coordinating Body marches from Exchange Square in Central to the Labour Department to campaign for a wage increase for foreign domestic workers in September. Photo: Felix Wong

7 Nov 2017 - 7:17PMvideocam

Hong Kong’s ‘cheap’ elderly care is nothing to be proud of

Rather than being proud to state that the ageing population is not a threat to Hong Kong’s public finances, we should be asking the government why it isn’t. Photo: AFP

The chief executive’s modest proposals in her policy address will not break the bank, but that is probably because they are far from adequate in meeting the challenges of a fast-ageing society.

23 Oct 2017 - 8:44PM

Why China’s two-child policy is failing the reality test

China’s strict one-child policy, introduced in 1979, was fully relaxed on January 1 last year amid concerns over a shrinking workforce, greying population and gender imbalance. Photo: Reuters

4 Feb 2017 - 7:37PMvideocam