Op-Ed Contributors

Protecting society's most vulnerable

By Karen McColl (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-07-26 08:27

How can we make sure that poor, sick, and marginalized people don't get left behind in the process of economic development? What needs to be done to protect these vulnerable groups in times of crisis? These questions were top of the agenda when Chinese and European counterparts met in Chengdu earlier this month.

A workshop on policies against poverty and exclusion took place as part of the third China-Europa Forum, which aims to create a dialogue between Chinese and European societies.

Although precise definitions of disadvantaged or vulnerable groups vary according to the context in Europe and China, there is much common ground.

The key culprits - poverty and discrimination - exist in both Europe and China. Some people are born into poverty and, in many European countries, social policies fail to lift people out of the deprivation that they are born into. Others are pushed into disadvantage because of disease, disability, natural disasters or environmental conditions.

Sometimes, the solutions that people seek to overcome their initial disadvantage push them further into poverty, or result in them facing even more discrimination. This is often the case with migrants, whether internal migrants in China or those who cross national borders in Europe trying to find a better future. In reality, many migrants find themselves facing a new life of poverty, discrimination and fear.

This is often coupled with legal obstacles that may prevent them from accessing basic rights, such as access to healthcare, education, housing and work.

Experience from Europe clearly shows that not everyone benefits equally from economic development and that some groups get left behind. Many European countries continue to face growing social inequalities.

In China, the rural communities have yet to reap many benefits from the country's rapid progress. There is now a big focus on helping the rural poor climb out of poverty.

The workshop heard of recent initiatives in Sichuan province that focus on community participation and on enabling the poor to help themselves. These projects, in partnership with the World Bank, provide villages with technological support for issues such as farming, water and renewable energy. Although, in general, China's urban population may have benefited more from the nation's transition than their country cousins, the urban poor and disadvantaged should not be forgotten. This was a key message from the workshop's European participants.

In cities the world over, wealth and privilege exist side-by-side with poverty and disadvantage. Chinese participants confirmed that Chinese cities are no exception and four vulnerable groups were highlighted - namely, workers who have lost their jobs, farmers who have been evicted from their land, people evicted from their homes by urban development projects and internal migrants from rural areas.