Whether or not they are doing work for the benefit of the general public should be the criterion for judging whether the associations are doing a good job or not, said Jiang Chunyun, chairman of the China Family Planning Association.

"Those in difficulty, such as laid-off workers, the poverty-stricken, and elderly people, should be given more attention," Jiang said at the opening ceremony of the second conference of the association's Fifth Council, which started Thursday in Beijing.

He urged associations at all levels to take in more experts and scholars who are interested in public welfare and young people who are well educated and have technical specialities.

Family planning in rural areas must depend more on the villagers themselves, Jiang said. "If villagers are not mobilized, no matter how hard the associations try, they will end up with zero results."

In urban areas, family planning should be linked to the management system of each community, he added.

Over the next few years, China's population will experience a net annual increase of more than 10 million people, said Zhang Weiqing, director of the State Family Planning Commission at the opening ceremony.

Aging of the country's population is speeding up, and by the middle of the century, one-fourth of China's population will be over 65 years old, according to Zhang.

The transient population in the country, which is now over 100 million, will also experience a rapid growth, he added.

Despite the low birth rate, low mortality and low rate of increase that have been achieved in China, there still remain some problems, Zhang pointed out.

For example, the birth rate in China has a potential to become high again, given that the country's social productivity is still underdeveloped and the social security system is not adequate.

(China Daily December 7, 2001)