https://www.scmp.com/rss/323978/feed Stuart Gietel-Basten is professor of Public Policy and Social Science at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com The release of China’s census in early May once again shone a clear light on the country’s demographic travails. While still growing overall, the population was shown to be ageing rapidly, and prospects for population stagnation and decline in the near future have become greater. Of course, the root causes of such macro changes in population growth and structure are simple: people are living longer, and women are having fewer children. Obviously, we don’t want to see mortality increasing, so... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3135759/if-china-wants-more-babies-it-needs-better-understanding-young?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3135759/if-china-wants-more-babies-it-needs-better-understanding-young?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 03 Jun 2021 19:30:11 +0000 Another year, another bleak forecast of China’s greying population. As most demographers predicted, the recent reforms in population policy – namely the move to a nationwide two-child policy – have had little impact on the country’s fertility rate. Indeed, figures released last month indicate a drop in the number of births in 2017 compared to 2016, from almost 18 million per year down to 17.23 million. Part of this decline is due to demographic technicalities. First, the number of women at... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2133535/why-china-doesnt-need-baby-boom-just-skilled-population?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2133535/why-china-doesnt-need-baby-boom-just-skilled-population?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Feb 2018 04:00:45 +0000 The government has made it clear that care for the elderly – and the young – will continue to be “outsourced” to the family and individual. But in a fast-changing society, where we can expect the number of older people suffering from long-term chronic illnesses to increase, families’ capacity to do everything “in-house” is also shifting. It is clear that domestic helpers will form an ever more central plank. In allowing people to stay at home as long as possible, the government’s proposal to... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2118727/can-hong-kong-attract-more-foreign-domestic-workers-meet-its?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2118727/can-hong-kong-attract-more-foreign-domestic-workers-meet-its?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Nov 2017 05:35:36 +0000 There is a truly remarkable line in the chief executive’s recent policy address: “On care for the elderly, we do not see the ageing population as a threat to public finance.” It is hard to think of a government in any other advanced economy in the world making such a carefree statement. At first glance, this looks like a proud boast of fiscal prudence. In reality, though, it is nothing more than a statement of the government’s lack of interest in taking a transformative role in tackling the... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2116581/hong-kongs-miserly-approach-elderly-care-nothing-be-proud?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2116581/hong-kongs-miserly-approach-elderly-care-nothing-be-proud?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Oct 2017 08:53:44 +0000 Recently, the Post led with the headline: “China’s birthrate still too low, despite two-child policy”. Figures released by Beijing indicated that the number of births coming after the national shift of policy suggested the rush to have more children was not, perhaps, as universally felt as had been hoped. For many demographers of China, this is little surprise. Studies have shown the underlying context of low fertility in urban China is not dissimilar to other settings in Asia, such as Hong... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2067770/why-chinas-two-child-policy-failing-reality-test?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2067770/why-chinas-two-child-policy-failing-reality-test?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Feb 2017 02:00:46 +0000