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对中国在世界舞台上扮演的角色充满了自信。中国如此庞大，有这么多的问题需要对付，人们贫富差距如此之大，世界上恐怕再也找不到比管理中国更复杂的工作了。这比当美国总统难得多，尽管两者有诸多不同之处。 Lesson 9
9.3 Multivariate family planning policy in China
It has been over two decades since China adopted the Family Planning Policy. However, there still exist misunderstandings about this policy. People mistakenly think that China’s Family Planning Policy equals the One Child Policy, which allows one couple to have only one child. Their impression is that this policy is implemented more strictly in urban areas: in cities where people are better-off, one couple can have only one child, while in the poor rural areas, one couple can have two or three children. Furthermore, they think that the One Child Policy is the cause of gender imbalance. I will now clarify these misunderstandings.
As a matter of fact, the policy adopted in the early 1980s is a multivariate policy called the Family Planning Policy, or the fertility policy. Its multivariate nature can be proved by two facts.
First, the total fertility rate in China now stands at 1.8, which means there is more than one child per family in most areas. For example, there is generally only one child in a family in urban areas, but two in rural areas, and three in ethnic minority areas. In some areas, like Tibet, there are no restrictions at all on the number of children a family can have. We can tell from this fact that China’s Family Planning Policy varies in accordance with the economic and social development level of different areas.
Secondly, China is seeing an unbalanced sex ratio at birth at the moment. The sex ratio at birth refers to the number of boys born per 100 girls born. This is not the same concept as the sex ratio of the total population.
The unbalance is not entirely the result of the Family Planning Policy. I would like to cite two interesting examples. My first example is the ROK. In 1988, the sex ratio at birth in the ROK was 114, and the ratio now in China is 117. I believe there is no family planning policy in the ROK. My second example is Singapore, whose sex ratio at birth in1984 was 109. Why is it a common problem in Asia? There are two reasons. The first reason is the influence of traditional culture and ideology, that is, a preference for sons, which poses a great problem for the sex ratio at
birth. Second, China’s unbalanced birth ratio is attributable to the poor social security in rural areas.
The Chinese government has launched a nationwide Girl Care Project to hamper the rising sex ratio at birth. This project aims to educate the general public to abandon their traditional preference for male children and to advocate female children’s status and rights. Secondly, the Chinese government is also making an effort to establish and improve the social security system, particularly in rural areas.
Thirdly, the phenomenon of allowing one child for urban families and two to three children for families in poor areas is called reverse selection of population quality. I have two points to make in the regard. The policy in rural areas is made in accordance with the economic situation there. The social security system is being gradually improved in rural areas. If a stringent One Child policy is to be introduced in this process, the household insurance coverage is likely to be reduced for rural families. Therefore, the number of children allowed in rural families is dependent on the economic situation.
9.5 联合国驻华协调代表谈中国的家庭与人口
家庭问题是十分复杂的，与经济、社会和文化等各方面的发展息息相
关。世界各地有充分的证据表明，需要仔细地研究和对待经济、社会和文化与家庭的联系，否则老龄化、人口迁移和艾滋病等引起的家庭结构和规模的变化将在经济、社会和文化上对家庭产生负面影响。
中国也是如此。中国是世界人口最多的国家，自20世纪50年代起经历了一个人口快速增长的时期，现在13亿人口以每年700万人的速度在增长。中国政府一贯将关系到每个社会成员衣、食、住、行等的家庭问题作为首要问题来对待。中国的家庭一般三代同堂，近年来有所变化。
中国进行了20多年的改革，拥有强大的体制和勤劳的人民，这些使中国取得了前所未有的成就，使五亿人口成功脱贫，使中国成为世界上最大的贸易国之一，并完成了大部分的联合国千年发展目标，而且其中有些比预期的2015年提前了整整11年。然而，正如去年3月发布的中国千年发展目标进度报告所指出的，中国的快速发展的背后还存在一些新老问题。东部和西部、农村和城市，以及男女两性的发展日益不平均是需要尽快解决的紧迫问题。同时，经济与社会、人类与自然的发展不协调的矛盾日益突出。家庭，尤其是贫困家庭，面临着艾滋病的威胁，缺乏机会，无法享受资源和服务，生存环境日益恶化。中国政府通过制定出自己的千年发展目标来应对这些挑战，也就是力争到2020年实现全面小康社会。
中国国家人口与计划生育委员会以及其他各级政府部门担负着保证家庭问题与国家整体发展进程紧密联系的挑战和责任。帮助完成这一