China’s unequal education system holding back its economy despite ambitions, top US panel hears

Declining workforce numbers and rural-urban divide keep country from overtaking American lead in science and technology, witnesses testify

Meanwhile, US urged to lure top talent from China and integrate AI earlier in education and federal hiring standards

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A Xinqiao Hospital researcher at Army Medical University in Chongqing checks the results made by an artificial intelligence model for blood cell testing. Photo: Handout via Xinhua

Published: 8:25am, 25 Feb 2023Updated: 10:45pm, 25 Feb 2023

China faces significant challenges in upgrading its workforce, as an unequal education system holds the country back despite its coordinated national policies and ambitious goals, witnesses testified on Friday at a top US congressional advisory commission on China policy.

At a hearing to assess China’s challenges and capabilities in educating and training its next generation of workers, witnesses said the US should attract top talent from China, integrate emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) into pre-university education and federal hiring standards, and help small businesses bring new technologies from the lab to the market.

But even if Washington did not change its policies, the US should retain its lead in science and technology, according to George Washington University political scientist Jeffrey Ding. “Sometimes the status quo is a defensible policy option,” he testified.

The hearing was organised by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), an independent panel set up by Congress in 2000 that reports directly to lawmakers about the national security implications of the bilateral relationship in trade and economics.

The testimony came as the US explores options to elevate its economic competitiveness and diversify its supply chains away from China. It also coincided with China trying to build a more efficient, high-quality workforce to cope with the challenges posed by its ageing population.

China’s nearly 1 billion-strong working-age population peaked in 2014. By 2100, China’s workforce is projected to number fewer than 400 million people, according to UN data from July.