China's Century

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That this is China's century is a commonplace thought. Yet China's population is ageing rapidly; the one-child policy was, after all, a population timebomb, and relaxing its rules has provided little relief. In this article Reuters examines the impact of an elderly population on China's hinterland

China’s greying rural economies - many composed of small farm holdings and low-end industries - have seen slumping productivity with no alternative engine of economic growth in sight. The brain drain is so advanced that President Xi Jinping is now calling for the return of talent to the countryside - once unthinkable for a nation that sees urbanisation as a ticket to prosperity. It reflects the ruling Communist Party’s desire to elevate the status of rural areas - places that 577 million still live or call home - to fend off risks of social unrest while boosting consumption, as well as controlling growth in big cities.