Poverty Reduction in China: Experiences and Measurement of Effects

This study employs the generalized method of moments(GMM)and panel vector autoregression(PVAR)models for a multi-factor quantitative dissection of China’s poverty reduction process across multiple stages,using provincial panel data from 2000 to 2019.According to our research,economic growth and social development are the key drivers of poverty reduction in China,but the trickle-down effect of economic growth is diminishing and marketization is having a lesser pro-poor effect.Public expenditure has failed to provide social protection and income redistribution benefits due to issues such as targeting error and elite capture.Increasing the efficiency of the poverty reduction system calls for adaptive adjustments.Finally,this study highlights China’s poverty reduction experiences and analyzes current challenges,which serve as inspiration for consolidating poverty-reduction achievements,combating relative poverty,and attaining countryside vitalization.

The contribution of cooperative irrigation scheme to poverty reduction in Tanzania

Irrigation system is a scare resource in most of drought-stricken Africa.How to manage and maintain the existing irrigation facilities in Africa is a debatable issue to both policy makers and beneficiaries.Irrigation facilities run by farmer cooperatives are considered ineffective,unsuccessful and dysfunctional in Tanzania by many researchers.A cooperative irrigation scheme is a mechanism that features the collective management of rural irrigation facilities by farmers'cooperative with some government intervention and external support.There is an increasing emphasis on the roles of cooperative irrigation scheme in the development of the agriculture sector and poverty reduction of smallholder farmers.In this study,the authors investigated the management and services of this scheme and analyzed its contribution to poverty reduction of smallholder rice farmers and community development in Tanzania through both quantitative and qualitative methods.The results showed that the scheme helped smallholder farmers increase the rice production and brought better market opportunities.The farmers'net income was also increased.Profit generated from rice farming not only improved the livelihoods of smallholder farmers but also created more employment opportunities in the rural communities.The research also revealed that the scheme was faced with a number of challenges due to resource and institutional constraints and low-level human capacity for both management and members.The research provides a feasible approach to effective management of small-scale agricultural infrastructure for poverty reduction in Africa.

BUILDING A MODERATELY PROSPEROUS SOCIETY IN ALL RESPECTS——Poverty Reduction: Xi Jinping’s Statements and Chinese Path

After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the Chinese people have been struggling against poverty amid national development under the leadership of the Communist Party of China(CPC). Since reform and opening up, in particular, China has planned for and organized development-oriented poverty reduction practices on a broad scale with remarkable achievements and blazed a new path of development-oriented poverty reduction with Chinese characteristics. This path is both an essential component of Chinese socialism and a result of the CPC’s ideological improvement on poverty reduction. Since the 18 th CPC National Congress in 2012, the whole Party, country, and society have been called upon to fight the battle against poverty on a full-scale under the guidance of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important statements on poverty reduction, unveiling a new stage for China’s development-oriented poverty reduction in the new era. China’s unprecedented poverty reduction achievements have enriched the path of poverty reduction with Chinese characteristics. Xi Jinping’s insightful and coherent statements on poverty reduction represent the latest results of Marxist anti-poverty theories and comprise an essential part of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for the New Era. His guidelines are the basis for the brilliant achievements of China’s poverty reduction endeavors, and will contribute Chinese experience and wisdom to global poverty governance.

Effects of Social Security Spending on Income Distribution and Poverty Reduction in China

Reasonable income distribution and eradication of rural poverty are vital for building a moderately prosperous society in all respects in China.This paper primarily examines the income distribution and poverty reduction effects of social security spending.Market income and redistribution policies are two determinants of income gaps.Based on CHIP2018 household survey data,we find that inadequate income redistribution policies have contributed to yawning income gaps,and that social security spending is more redistributive than personal income tax and social security contributions.After estimating the redistribution effects of social security spending and itemized incomes,we find that pension payments have contributed the most to household income gaps,and that subsistence protection and rural pension payments help improve income distribution.With respect to the poverty reduction effects of social security spending,we have estimated China’s current poverty incidence and the poverty reduction effects of pension payments,healthcare,and educational allowances with CHIP2018 data,and discover that an increase in social security spending may effectively reduce rural poverty.In building a moderately prosperous society in all respects,China should increase social security spending,focusing on specific target groups,and promote the role of social security spending in regulating income distribution and offering social protection to rural residents.

Poverty reduction within the framework of SDGs and Post-2015 Development Agenda

The eradication of poverty is one of the largest global challenges facing the world. This article examines poverty reduction goals within the framework of Post-2015 Development Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs). It also discusses the relationship between poverty reduction and sustainable development. Poverty reduction and sustainable development are inseparable and poverty reduction is the premise for sustainable development. Furthermore, several key bones of contention on the role of poverty reduction and sustainable development and implications of Post-2015 Development Agenda are also discussed. It concludes that to end poverty and inequality should continuously be given top priority for the Chinese government, because poverty reduction is China's soft power. Meanwhile, new ways of poverty alleviation should be explored and government should make great efforts to create a new partnership for poverty reduction and development.

Poverty Reduction Effects of China’s Aid and Investment to Developing Countries

The Chinese approach to poverty reduction is a government-led and marketbased approach that gives priority to infrastructure and combines fiscal subsidy with development as an antidote to poverty.These characteristics are also evident in China’s cooperation with other developing countries on poverty reduction.China supports other developing countries to reduce poverty via aid and investment mainly in the field of infrastructure.While the government and SOEs take the lead in foreign aid and investment,China also invites other sources of capital to participate in market-based development in partnership with recipient countries.Our empirical research finds that aid and investment from China are generally conducive to reducing poverty incidence in recipient developing countries,but their poverty reduction effects vary across different types of aid and investment.The elements characteristic of the Chinese approach to poverty reduction proved to be effective in helping other developing countries reduce poverty as well.Nevertheless,the effectiveness of aid and investment in reducing poverty is subject to the governance and market efficiency of recipient countries.In order for the Chinese experience to work in less developed countries,future cooperation on poverty reduction must put a premium on governance and market systems.

Does empowering women benefit poverty reduction?Evidence from a multi-component program in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China

Ending poverty is a top priority of the international development agenda,and governments worldwide have attached great importance to poverty alleviation measures.However,poverty reduction policies have mostly focused on men,which has widened the gap in productivity and income between men and women and increased gender inequality.This paper aims to determine the impacts of a multi-component program on women's empowerment and poverty reduction,and explore the role empowered women play in poverty reduction.The dataset used in this study was collected in nine poor counties of Ulanqab City in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China at the end of 2014,yielding a sample of 900 households.Recall questions were used to reconstruct the baseline data and build a panel dataset.Smaller groups of rural households were further identified to better target the women in the beneficiary group.To control the selection bias,propensity score matching,inverse probability weighting,and the difference-in-differences matching method were used to analyze the effect of the program and undertake robust checks.The results show that the program has positive effects on women's empowerment and poverty reduction simultaneously.Empowering women also has positive effects on poverty reduction,and the women who were the beneficiaries have contributed to increasing the incomes and living standards of households.Training,microfinance,and associations are common means or strategies to empower women to address poverty.This paper provides new empirical evidence that women can benefit from a gender-focus program through portfolio intervention such as training,cooperatives,and credit.Empowered women further improve the livelihoods of poor households and help lift them out of poverty.The results suggest that researchers and policymakers need to pay more attention to poverty issues from the perspective of gender.

Study on the Role of Land Circulation in Promoting Poverty Reduction through Industrial Development——A Case Study of Mopi Village,Xinping County,Yunnan Province

In recent years,under the stimulation of the national policy and the land circulation policy,the villages and towns have begun to guide the farmers to carry on the land circulation in an orderly way,combine the targeted poverty alleviation with the development of modern agriculture,and drive the registered households to participate in the modern agricultural industry and achieve the goal of getting rid of poverty and getting rich while realizing the transformation and upgrading of agriculture. The transfer of land management right can drive the local employment and the poverty reduction through industrial development is implemented. Taking Mopi Village in Xinping County as an example,this paper analyzes the main methods and effects of the transfer of land management right in this village in promoting poverty reduction through industrial development,and puts forward the existing problems and suggestions.

Long-Term Poverty Reduction Strategies in China Post-2020

Poverty reduction is an eternal theme in the modernization drive of countries.After 2020,China’s poverty reduction endeavors will face new challenges and shift towards:(i)elevating poverty standards,(ii)placing equal emphasis on rural and urban poverty,(iii)preventing people in the deeply poor regions from slipping back to poverty,(iv)combining external assistance with endogenous development,and(v)enhancing social protection and targeted fiscal support for aiding the poor.Following the new trends of poverty reduction,policymakers should update their strategic approach,adopt new poverty reduction standards,target at a broader group of poor groups,promote pro-poor development,and improve poverty governance.Lastly,this paper puts forward the following policy recommendations for reducing poverty in China post-2020:(i)maintaining policy continuity and stability during the transition period;(ii)creating regular poverty relief mechanisms for urban and rural residents;(iii)improving the targeted identification and dynamic adjustment of target groups for poverty reduction;and(iv)reducing poverty through social protection and development.

Achievements and Outlook of China's Multidimensional Poverty Reduction

Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the Chinese government has made great achievements in reducing poverty through human capital development(education, healthcare, gender equality, maternal and infant health, and prevention and treatment of iodine deficiency), infrastructure construction(transportation,electric power, ICT application and access to safe drinking water), improvement of living conditions(toilet hygiene, stove renovation and resettlement) and rural social security("five-guarantees" system, subsistence allowance, rural pension insurance, natural disaster relief and agricultural insurance). Since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012, the Chinese government has made remarkable progress in eradicating poverty and enhancing village governance. However, serious challenges will still exist after China's poverty eradication in 2020 and may lead to re-impoverishment.

Study on Rural Poverty Reduction Effect of Traffic Infrastructure

To systematically comb and explore the rural poverty reduction effect of traffic infrastructure,the author analyzed the mechanism,main channels and actual effect of rural traffic infrastructure on poverty reduction.It revealed that rural traffic infrastructure exerts positive or negative effect on poverty reduction directly or indirectly.The positive channel includes increasing non-agricultural employment opportunities,reducing costs for agricultural production,transportation and labor transfer,increasing availability of social service,and promoting adjustment of agricultural industrial structure and development of rural tourism resources.On the whole,traffic infrastructure has significant positive influence on rural poverty reduction.Finally,it summarized policy recommendations for building pro-poor traffic infrastructure,and came up with vacancy of related research field and future exploration direction.

China's Four-Decade Rural Poverty Reduction in Urbanization:Efforts and Outcomes

Over the past four decades of reform and opening-up, China has basically eradicated hunger and lifted over 700 million rural people out of poverty. China's poverty incidence has dropped to about 3%. These achievements can be attributed to the following factors: First, farmers have regained their economic freedom that was lost in the planned economy era. Second, China's top decision-makers have followed people's will by transitioning into the market economy and thus achieved rapid economic growth. Third,the government has continuously enhanced infrastructure and human capital investments,and implemented a social protection system in rural and urban areas nationwide. Fourth,integrated poverty reduction measures have been carried out to assist poor people in disadvantaged regions and those with poor capabilities. Given the diminishing poverty reduction effect of pro-poor fiscal funds, it is necessary to avoid direct administrative interventions in the operational decision-making of poor households and broaden institutional space for rural cooperative economy. Meanwhile, China should remove inequalities in the rights between the urban and rural households, facilitate the labor migration of the poor, and promote the urbanization of rural people.

Poverty reduction effects of integrating high-quality development and cultural tourism in China

The integration of the cultural tourism industry with high-quality development is believed to be an important method of alleviating poverty.Most research in this area has focused on single towns,cities,or regions without considering the spillover effects of neighboring areas.To fill this gap,this study applies a spatial panel econometric model to empirically test the spatial spillover effects of integrating the cultural tourism industry with high-quality developments and their mechanisms of poverty alleviation based on provincial panel data of the Chinese Mainland from 2010 to 2020.Four key results are presented.First,there is an obvious spatial dependence on the high-quality development scale,specialization level,and poverty level of cultural tourism integration.The common panel model is found to overestimate the impact of this integration on poverty alleviation because it ignores the spatial spillover-related explanatory variables.Second,the scale of development quality is found to have no significant impact on poverty alleviation when integrating cultural tourism;however,the level of development specialization has both a direct impact on poverty alleviation and the spatial spillover effect.Third,the integration of the cultural tourism industry in the Central and Western regions is shown to have a strong direct effect on poverty reduction through high-quality development.However,the spillover effect on poverty reduction in the Eastern region is greater than that in the Central and Western regions.Fourth,the integration of high-quality development and cultural tourism is found to have a direct impact on poverty alleviation overall by promoting tourism consumption,material capital accumulation,and structural transformation.

FAO’s Cooperation with China on Poverty reduction

OVER the past four decades of reform and opening-up,China’s economic development has accomplished significant achievements,Economic and social growth in povertystricken areas,especially,has made great strides.“In just four decades,China lifted about 740 million people out of poverty as a result of comprehensive and innovative approaches that have successfully reached vulnerable populations.The UN MillenniumDevelopment Goals(MDGs)aimed at reducing the number of people living in extreme poverty by half.China was the first developing country that has achieved the target ahead of time,”Vincent Martin,the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s(FAO)representative in China and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,remarked in an interview with China Today.China has created a miracle in the history of poverty reduction,making tremendous contributions to the fulfillment of the UN MDGs.

International Organizations’ Messages on China’s Poverty Reduction

Great Contribution to the World Antonio Guterres,UN Secretary-General The most important contribution that China is making to the eradication of poverty is Chinese achievements.The fact that China has been able to move hundreds of millions of people out of poverty and that China now has a very clear target to fully eradicate extreme poverty in China in 2020 is the most important contribution.But there is another one.

How Has China Achieved Large-Scale Poverty Reduction?

OVER the past 40 years since the policy of reform and opening-up was introduced,China has accomplished remarkable achievements in eliminating poverty with the rapid economic and social development,and the promotion of poverty alleviation initiatives.About 740 million people have been freed from the shackles of absolute poverty,leading China to become a country with the most people lifted out of poverty in the world.How has China achieved such large-scale poverty reduction?What development logic leads to the great accomplishments in poverty reduction?

Measuring Multidimensional Poverty Reduction for the Chinese Elderly——Based on 2010 and 2016 Data from the China Family Panel Studies(CFPS)

Based on data gathered from the China Family Panel Studies(CFPS)in 2010 and 2016,this paper examines income poverty and multidimensional poverty among the Chinese elderly.Compared with the non-elderly population,poverty incidence was relatively lower among China’s elderly population in 2010,but the elderly poor were significantly more poor.By 2016,the level of poverty became more or less the same between elderly and non-elderly people.Compared with 2010,the poverty incidence on various deprived dimensions and the average share of deprivation for the elderly fell sharply in 2016 by an average of 30 and 10 percentage points,respectively.Reduction in poverty incidence was 10 percentage points higher for the rural elderly than for the urban elderly.After estimating the multidimensional poverty index for the elderly by the“two no worries and three guarantees”criteria,we found that the intensity of multidimensional poverty was only about half that of the income poverty.The“two worries,”i.e.the lack of food and clothing,contributed more to multidimensional poverty than did what the“three guarantees”target i.e.education,healthcare and housing,especially on income and residential energy dimensions.Elderly healthcare contributed more than 20%to the“three guarantees.”

Establishing a Sound,Stable,and Long-Term Mechanism for Poverty Reduction

POVERTY is a state that can last indefinitely.A sound,stable,and long-term mechanism is therefore necessary to end it.Such a mechanism decides the process and outcome of the fight against poverty,and is critical for the realization of China’s post-2020 goal of sustainable development in poor areas and reduction of relative poverty.It also lays the foundation for realizing the country’s second centenary goal – building a modern socialist country that is prosperous,strong,democratic,culturally advanced,and harmonious by 2049.

Diamond Model Based Analysis on Cooperation between of Poverty Alleviation and Emission Reduction in Agricultural Counties: A Case Study of Huoshan County in Anhui Province

2020 is the year of decisive stage for building a well-off society in an all-round way.On the winter vacation of 2020,we went to Huoshan County,Anhui Province,an old revolutionary area,and conducted a social survey for nearly a month.Through interviews,on-site observations,and access to materials,we clearly found that the local party committee and government actively responded to the call of the state,practiced the"two mountains"theory,turned a poor and backward agricultural county into a national ecologically civilized and well-off county,and realized the coordinated progress of poverty alleviation and energy conservation and emission reduction.Starting from the government policies and rural facts of Huoshan County,a national ecological county,and using Porter’s"Diamond Model",our team used Huoshan County’s environmental advantages and disadvantages,economic prosperity and decline as comparison conditions,and analyzed external factors such as factor conditions,opportunities,related and supporting industries,government forces,etc.,to come up with pertinent recommendations for the development of agricultural county-level characteristic industries.

Poverty Occurrence Characteristics of Ancient Towns and Villages in Shanxi Province and Poverty Reduction Countermeasures

Based on the questionnaire of 10 sample ancient towns and villages in Shanxi Province,we analyze the poverty occurrence characteristics of ancient towns and villages in Shanxi Province: the poverty incidence in ancient towns and villages is high,with the slow pace of poverty re- duction; the regional characteristics of poverty is prominent; there are conspicuous differences in income between residents living in old houses and residents not living in old houses; poverty reduction shows vulnerability and instability. Then we put forward countermeasures for poverty reduction of ancient towns and villages in Shanxi Province as follows: first,improving the targeting mechanism of poverty in ancient towns and villages; second,speeding up the development of agricultural industrialization in ancient towns and villages; third,advancing internal " urbanization" of ancient towns and villages and new countryside construction; fourth,strengthening infrastructure building in ancient towns and villages; fifth,providing fair and efficient allocation of resources,and reducing regional differences; sixth,promoting the ability of residents in ancient towns and villages to cope with poverty reduction vulnerability.