Population Ageing in China

The fear of uncontrollable population growth in the second half of the 20th century made the Chinese government introduce a birth control policy. The sharp decline of the fertility rate below the replacement rate and the extension of life expectancy translate now to unusually fast population ageing. The purpose of this thesis is to explain the causes that lead to ageing of the current Chinese population and its impacts on the economy and to demonstrate possible practises that could be used to cope with the consequences of the population ageing in the People´s Republic of China. The first chapter concerns itself with the demography of population in general, characterizes indicators that are used to describe population development and subsequently defines population policy and describes its different types. Part of the chapter is dedicated to the population policy in China in the second half of the 20th century. The second chapter describes the current state of Chinese population and explains the problems that result from population ageing (e.g. labour force decline and wage increase that relates to it, disappearing demographic dividend or lack of social services facilities). The third chapter focuses on the practises which the Chinese government uses to react to population ageing. The newly established two-child policy and the effects which it could bring in relation to ageing are emphasized. The chapter also includes recommendations as to on which actions should the government focus so that the ageing does not pose a threat to the country and its development.