Urbanisation as a Measure for Poverty Reduction in China

Authors

Tai-Chee Wong, Nanyang Technological University of SingaporeFollow

Abstract

Prior to the take-off of the urban-led economic reforms in the mid-1980s, China’s rate of urbanisation was as low as 18%, typical of an agrarian society characterised by the great majority of population leading a subsistence livelihood. By 2021, the rapid pace of urbanisation, coupled with modern city development and export-led industrialisation, has witnessed close to 65% of the population living in the urban areas. This paper examines the urbanisation-poverty nexus by demonstrating how the effects of city agglomeration and productive economic activities have raised incomes and the real purchasing power of urban workforce, including rural migrants. Using poverty reduction as a justifying governance, the Chinese government has deployed both rural- and urbanled measures such as household responsibility system and export-driven industrialisation to bolster growth. The free play of global market forces has however generated widening gaps between rich and poor, and this will become another challenging issue for the government.

Recommended Citation

Wong, Tai-Chee (2022) "Urbanisation as a Measure for Poverty Reduction in China," Malaysian Journal of Chinese Studies: Vol. 11: No. 1, Article 6.
Available at: https://mjcs.newera.edu.my/journal/vol11/iss1/6