Explainer | How will talent dividend keep China competitive as its population shrinks and ages?
- China’s population fell by 850,000 to 1.412 billion last year in the first decline in six decades
- Country’s gross higher education enrolment rate hit nearly 60 per cent last year
To dismiss concerns about the country’s growth potential, they have stressed that China’s talent pool is booming and have played down the disappearance of the demographic dividend that powered decades of rapid economic development.
So, just how does China view its demographic shift and where does it stand now in terms of talent?
02:14
Chinese reluctant to have children as China reports first population fall in 61 years
What is Beijing’s idea of a talent dividend?
China’s basic stance on its declining population can be summarised as “the population dividend has not disappeared, while a talent dividend is in the making” – an idea frequently trumpeted by top officials in recent months.
Though its population peaked earlier than expected, falling by 850,000 to 1.412 billion last year, it still had a 900 million-strong workforce with improved education to provide a strong impetus for development, they said.
China also had 137 million healthy and relatively young senior citizens, who were the “new dividend” to be developed, an article in the Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily said on Tuesday. They had “high overall quality, rich experience and a big passion for re-employment and volunteer service” and should be regarded as a “precious fortune” for society, it said.
While noting the need to maintain a “moderate” birth rate and population size, President Xi Jinping has urged a focus on the quality of the population as the Chinese economy transitions from high-speed growth to high-quality development.