Abstract
China has one of the longest and singular histories of civilization. Its cultural and social specificities can be understood as a counterpoint to the Western model of society. Beatriz Carrillo, Johanna Hood and Paul Kadetz’s Handbook of Welfare in China sheds light on the results of a transformation process that has been going on in the country for at least 50 years. The Handbook of Welfare in China is part of the Handbooks of Research on Contemporary China series edited by David S. G. Goodman, from Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, China. This set of books aims at developing a multidisciplinary understanding of topics and concepts relevant to understanding China in the twenty-first century and, in my understanding, is essential literature for researchers whose subject matter is China. Carrillo, Hood and Kadetz aim to cover the landmark events and processes shaping the development of China’s social welfare system. Taking into account the authors’ expertise and the breadth of the themes and 20 chapters covered in the book, we see that the handbook is an excellent reference for researchers studying contemporary China.
The book begins with some premises necessary to understand present-day China as well as the set of transformations that have been taking place in the country. China presents a remarkable trajectory of economic and social development while maintaining a political order very different from Western societies. Over the past 40 years, Chinese society have moved towards, what the authors call, a ‘post-socialist market-oriented regime’. This modus operandi incorporates economic reforms aimed at the domestic market and an aggressive insertion into the international market. The economic reforms initiated in 1978 associated with an open-door strategy fundamental contoured China’s transition to market logic. This market logic was also applied to welfare provision, which in the view of the authors, generated disastrous consequences for most Chinese. Using a mix of evolutionary data analysis and illustrative case studies, the authors develop their arguments on China’s recent social conjuncture and the progress, inconsistencies and challenges related to China’s welfare system.
The book is a set of articles divided into five parts and makes three key contributions. First, the editors propose that a Eurocentric concept of the welfare state should not inform analysis of contemporary China. The concept that the welfare state is one that ‘dedicates a substantial part of its revenue to social spending as a result of particular economic, social and political processes and ideas’ (p. 2) defines a historical time that does not apply to China; for example, it obscures the impacts of the adoption of a Confucian moral code. In the same way, that does not consider Chinese historical events that precede the date of formulation of this concept (welfare state – 1800s) in Western countries. Various characteristics of Chinese philosophy, from principles of benevolence, humaneness, to rules of propriety, obedience and family morality, originate from early dynasties and predate the Western concept of the welfare state.
The book’s second argument critiques the value and processes of transferring knowledge from developed countries to developing countries, particularly concerning social policies. Beatriz et al. argue that in China, the formulation and generation of endogenous knowledge (indigenization process) should be considered in a leading role. The third contribution of the book highlights how historical welfare provision in China has had a verified effect on post-economic reforms. The size of the Chinese territory, as well as the deep regional inequalities, demands specific policies for each region. These policies should consider indicators from population size, land type to climatic issues. Therefore, the decentralization of welfare provision policies for China becomes a crucial issue for the results to be achieved. Associated with this element is the distinction of treatment given to rural and urban areas. The chapters in Part III of the book are excellent in illustrating the gaps in the welfare system (especially Chapters 10, 11 and 14).
The book starts with charting how China’s welfare system was shaped by key political transitions, from the Empire period to the establishment of Maoist ideology in the 1950s. This historical perspective highlights how examining ideology and political power remains key to understanding adoption of welfare policies in China.
The second part of the book guides the reader through different elements of the welfare system in reform-era China. These developments are demonstrated through cases related to the health system (medical insurance, medical financial assistance, among others), differences between the policies implemented in urban and rural areas (Chapters 6 and 7) and current education provision (Liu, Chapter 8). It seems clear that due to wage conditions generated in urban centres, rural areas should receive more attention when defining the supply of essential services to the population. When what actually occurs, based on purely economic market logic, tends to reverse the priority.
Another point to note is that gaps between policy intent and the implemented projects have been left behind. Factors such as decentralization, local fiscal responsibility and regional characteristics affected the supply and quality of the service offered by the State and this kind of services determines failures and successes of cases.
In my opinion, the third part of the book provides the reader an insight into the problems of China’s current welfare system. For example, problems originating from urban–rural differentials affect basic public service provision, with impacts such as creating an unequal system of education and health services, and salary structures. It may be noted that despite the impressive progress made by Chinese public welfare policies on expanding to universal coverage, increasing inequality has disadvantaged a significant portion of the population.
Part IV ‘Engaging Non-State Welfare providers domestically and abroad’ discusses cases where Chinese non-state actors take part in the delivery of public welfare provision. In Chapter 15, Hsu and Hasmath demonstrate how the presence of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) has helped expand welfare delivery, but it caters to local initiatives and depends on proposals for collaboration by local administrations. China’s relationship globally is slightly different as Kadetz and Hood show through cases on relations established with African countries (pp. 340, 342). In such cases, China attributes political and economic importance to bilateral agreements of transference and provision of public services to other countries.
Finally, Part V discusses the future challenges of welfare provision in China including national stances on climate change, pollution and the one-child policy. In particular, the authors discuss issues such as unequal population distribution, ageing of the population and issues of environmental and food security, almost as provocation to reflect on China’s development trajectory. For example, they question how China will deal with the ageing of its population, a simultaneous relaxation of the one-child policy, and increasing human mobility (via loosening of the hukou system). 1
To sum up, I see this handbook as a reference work for those who wish to understand China’s welfare system in a historical perspective, its evolution over the recent years and its challenges to increase its social and economic reach and distribution. The contributing authors not only present detailed insights from the case studies but also indicate that despite good results, China still has challenges ahead.