China’s fight against poverty

Chinese Premier Xi Jinping has claimed that his country has completely eradicated extreme poverty. China faced many vicissitudes in the forms of back-to-back revolutions, civil war and economic reforms. The world’s largest economy has lifted 800 million people out of poverty, which is a rare achievement. While China celebrates its victory over extreme poverty, Western powers are calling it propaganda.

Chinese policies are often criticized for being power-centric, putting billions of dollars in the One Belt One Road initiative, constantly increasing military expenditure, and their growing diplomatic influence in the world. What critics tend to ignore is the fact that Xi’s administration also gave precedence to poverty alleviation programs and in the last eight years invested $246 billion. The government posted three million civil servants to the remote areas of the country to fight poverty. According to a Global Times article, 1,800 of these civil servants lost their lives serving their country in the line of duty.

Administrating a country with a population of more than a 1.3billion, covering 9.6 million square kilometers of land is an arduous task. According to statistics, the poverty ratio in 2000 was around 49.8 percent, which fell to zero in 2020. Poverty in China usually refers to extreme poverty in rural areas, the population living below $1.69 a day, which is close to the World Bank’s $1.90 estimation of the poverty line. Experts criticize that this threshold is very low. Nonetheless, the Chinese government argued that their threshold is higher than the global average once adjusted for Purchasing Power Parity (PPP).

The economic reforms of late 1970 created opportunities for the educated class; therefore, with the passage of time their salaries rose dramatically. On the other hand, a large fraction of the population with little or no education lagged behind significantly, leaving a wealth gap in society. The higher disposable income and development in the eastern provinces has considerably changed the living standard of the residents. For instance, per capita income for the inhabitants of a megacity such as Shanghai is $10,000 and that of Gansu province is only $2,771 in 2019.

To fight poverty, the government set up a State Council Office, whose responsibility was to identify impoverished counties and gather data. By the year 1994, a seven-year priority poverty alleviation program started. The idea of the program was to lift 80 million people out of extreme poverty within a period of seven years. Special funds for poverty alleviation were also allocated. In 1993, a cash transfer program called Diabo was launched for poor individuals.

The registered poor families got financial assistance according to their needs. In some counties, whole villages were lifted out of poverty. For that purpose, fast railway tracks were set up so those laborers could reach the market. Such projects also created job opportunities for locals. Similarly, areas where poor families were living in mountains were relocated to urban areas.

Some experts argue that the financial assistance given to each family was distributed among family members, after which each member received only a fraction of the total assistance. These programs are also criticized for their in-effectiveness due to corruption. However, the Chinese government claims that the data collected by civil servants are constantly audited to avoid any possible malpractices. Similarly, relocated families find it difficult to earn their living in urban areas due to a lack of education and skills, making their livelihood uncertain.

Such claims are true but Xi’s administration understood that lifting the rural poor will be the first step and making sure that they do not fall back into poverty will be the next challenge. For that reason, among other measures, the government provided better access to technology that enabled poor farmers to market their products. The Chinese government also offered different skill programs to these people, coupled with subsidized education. Over the period, with better skill sets and education, the younger generation will be able to experience a better life

Chinese society is still facing many challenges and a significant amount of effort will be needed for the sustainability of these poverty alleviation measures. However, the government has successfully eliminated “two worries” – inadequate food, clothing as promised, and guarantees access to healthcare, education and housing that was also applauded by the World Bank.

The writer is a Karachi-based freelance journalist.

Email: sfahad9064@gmail.com