As time changes and society moves forward, a more decentralized social welfare system will eventually be the inevitable choice in building the foundation for China's social welfare system. This evolution has great bearing on the livelihood of the people.

Dou Yupei, Vice Minister of Civil Affairs, made the remarks during an interview with China.org.cn on Wednesday. He offered a synopsis on the development of social welfare systems in China.

Dou said that in 2000, the State Council had promulgated a series of favorable policies directed toward non-government-supported social welfare, taking into account of the opinions from 11 ministries including the Ministry of Civil Affairs. The local governments also have issued related policies in favor of it.

However, the undertaking of non-government-supported social welfare still leaves much to be desired, according to Dou. On one hand, the policies are not in full play. On the other hand, there is a huge potential need, yet the need has been dampened by traditions that placing parents in nursing homes is seen as stigmatic. Financial problems have also put a damper on its development since most welfare institutions are still not affordable for the general population.

Dou mentioned three management types for Chinese social welfare institutions. The government runs some of them. Some are collectively run in rural areas. And the rest are enjoying favorable policies devised by their grassroots communities or individuals.

Years of efforts have brought positive results. Currently there are more than 39,500 social welfare institutions. 1,456 of them are general ones to accommodate the old, handicapped and orphans. 6,724 of them are designated for elders in urban areas and 31,373 for elders in rural areas. To create more job opportunities for handicapped people, the government has established some 30,100 welfare enterprises that offer 559,000 placements. There are 249 institutions and other supporting departments in place to help the orphans.

In general, the welfare system has made great strides forward. But more efforts are needed in view of the huge strain resulting from the increasing ageing population.

China's ageing population has reached 144 million. By the year 2014, it will have hit an estimated 200 million, 300 million in 2026, and approximately 400 million in 2037. Currently China has 16 million octogenarians. This number will surpass 20 million in 2010, and 30 million in 2020. Such a large ageing population has rendered fiscal output insufficient because China is still a developing country. In contrast, many developed Western countries boasted a high GDP per capital (US$5,000-10,000) when they experienced a large elderly population. China must take preventive measures to address this serious problem.

At present the social welfare service system is based on the family and communities and complemented by organizations, said Dou.

Supporting parents is a long-standing Chinese tradition. Most old people have their own houses and this eases the bed shortage inside social welfare organizations. At the same time Chinese law recognizes filial obligation: children are obliged to support their aged parents not only economically but also spiritually and by way of any other reasonable requests.

With the family size getting smaller, the family's support role regarding old people has weakened. The number of the empty-nest elderly and single seniors has increased. So the social welfare service system must also depend upon local communities because communities can easily reach and care for the elderly. "We are making efforts to improve the welfare services of communities, such as visiting services, housework services, daytime attendance, spiritual counseling and emergency assistance," Dou said.

Since some aged people are often not in good health, they need more professional attention. Hence, the social welfare service system has to be complemented by other organizations. "We will increase the bed numbers of nursing homes gradually via government investments and donations from society," Dou added.

"If families, communities and organizations work together, we can eventually build a social welfare system that fits China's unique circumstances."

Another experimental pattern for support systems in China is "residence support for the aged." There are three types of proposals.

The first initiative suggests that the aged loan their spare houses to welfare organizations and receive their living expenses for this arrangement. After they die, their families still can inherit the houses.

The second plan suggests that the aged entrust their houses to welfare organizations and turn their lives over to the care of the welfare organizations. After they die, these organizations would inherit their houses.

The third idea suggests that the old people sell their houses to the welfare organizations and get paid a lump sum. They would still continue to live in their house, paying nominal rent to the welfare organizations.

Time is necessary to perfect any social security system but funds and services for the aged are currently in short supply. For families with many difficulties, the above proposals are good choices. But to popularize them, more time is needed for further research and study; eventually appropriate regulations and laws will be made.

(China.org.cn by Chen Lin and He Shan, October 18, 2007)