Pension System for the Rural Areas in Actual Social and Economic Conditions in China

Abstract

The article first describes and analyzes China's social support measures for rural population from 1950s to nowadays. It depicts the indistinct stages of pension system institutionalization from the time it appeared and up to the present. The major Chinese society peculiarity lies in a huge gap between standards of living in the city and in the country. It has its present characteristics due to the historical environment of official employment in Chinese villages and the previous absence of social and pension governmental support as its circumstances. In the study latent periods of switching from one pension form to the others are revealed. The fact is that China's social support measures for rural population has only history of one hundred years. However different pension forms replace each other dramatically during this time while special aspects of moral issues, family relations and social structures of Chinese society complicate the situation. Various aspects of rural pension policy in China are underexplored for that moment. The paper fills this important gap and gives much attention to its social, cultural and economical aspects. Evolution of Chinese rural pension policy starts from the "Five Guarantees" system, continues with the "Baoji model" and concludes with the "New Pension System" development. This system is to equalize rural and urban pension rights in China. In conclusion due to the National Social Policy only from 2014 every Chinese rural citizen aged 60 and older has pension entitlements. This fact can indicate that the primary maturity of China’s state pension system for old-age rural population has been reached.