China is in the midst of a major move toward urbanization. The issue of large numbers of farmers-turned-city-workers known in China as migrant workers must be addressed since a massive population movement has occurred over the last two decades.

The number of workers from the countryside now working in cities stands at 120 million, according to the Research Report on China's Farmers-Turned-Workers released by the Policy Research Office under the State Council in 2006. When those working in township factories in their home counties are included, the figure reaches almost 200 million. And the number is rising.

Besides numerical increase, significant changes are taking place in the composition of the migrant population. According to the State Council report, those aged between 16 and 30 account for 61 percent of the total migrant population; those between 31 and 40 make up 23 percent; and those older than 41 comprise only 16 percent.

This means that a new generation of migrant workers is replacing the older generation.

The first generation has its roots in the countryside and its ultimate destination is a return to the rural home place. In recent years, many urban enterprises have begun to impose age limits on workers. As a result, large numbers of older farmers-turned-workers are expected to return to the countryside.

However, things are markedly different with the new generation of migrant workers.

The majority have had education above the middle school level. Many are unmarried and have no families to support back home. The majority have little experience in farm work.

Their motivation for working in cities is different from their predecessors, and they have different expectations. They not only hope to make a living in urban areas but also want to start careers. Some observers say this group of migrant workers has embarked on a road of no return.

In view of all this, the issue of making migrant workers regular urban workers and residents has been put on the agenda.

But institutional stumbling blocks stand in the way.

First is the decades-old domicile control system which differentiates urban and rural populations. This is the almost insurmountable threshold for migrant workers to cross to become real urban residents.

Reform of the existing domicile control system was launched in various localities in recent years. It involves unifying residence registration in urban and rural areas and granting permanent residence permits to rural people in cities.

But the reform projects were abruptly stopped.

Take Zhengzhou, capital of Henan Province. Domicile reform was started in the city as early as 2001. By 2003, domicile control was announced to have been "totally liberalized".

However, the brakes were abruptly applied to the reform project in August 2004. The city authorities explained that rapid population growth strained the city's traffic system, educational resources and social security system. Shenyang, provincial capital of Liaoning, had similar experiences.

Second, the issues also involve the social security system and various kinds of welfare benefits closely associated with permanent urban residence permits.

This poses an even greater barrier to overcome than the residence-permit system itself.

The problem is the great gulf between urban and rural populations in terms of social security and other welfare benefits. In addition, the principle that fees come before enjoying benefits is a foundation of the urban social security system. For years, most urban residents have had money deducted from their salary that goes to the social security funds. Migrant workers are still outside the system.

Third, two different labor markets exist for urbanites and their rural counterparts the high-end market and the low-end.

Better educated urban residents often get jobs that pay much more than those landed by more poorly educated workers from the countryside.

Even if the institutional stumbling blocks such as the domicile control system are removed, migrant workers' low incomes will still make it impossible for them to sustain themselves as regular urban residents and workers.

It is unrealistic to expect that the migrant population will really be incorporated into cities in a short span of time.

Conditions need to be created to reach that goal. It will take a few generations before the migrant population becomes truly integrated with the urban population.

The government must start facilitating that integration now.

The experience of early overseas Chinese integration into Western societies may offer some enlightenment.

To begin with, they were mostly in low-end professions, running restaurants and laundries, working as cooks and tailors. They were on very low rungs of the social ladder.

However, Chinese, including overseas Chinese, generally give top priority to their children's education. As a result, the children and the following generations of the early overseas Chinese received good education, which served as stepping stones into Western society.

In the long run, education is also a prescription for migrant workers' children to integrate into the cities.

The author is a professor with the Sociology Department of Tsinghua University

(China Daily March 27, 2007)