The Third Plenary Session: from the experts

Cai Fang, professor of population studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences as well as a national legislator

Q: What would be your most expected reform in China? Why?

A: The reform should be comprehensive, covering all important sectors.

Reform of the hukou system could bring about a more sufficient labor supply and improve the labor participation rate. Meanwhile, it could stabilize the group of migrant workers in cities, especially the young generation of migrant workers. It is a move to guarantee social stability in the future.

Besides, any country that wants to realize modernization must improve the proportion of urbanization.

Q: What measures will be taken on social reform? How should China cope with the diminishing demographic dividends?

A: There has been a negative growth of the working population since 2011. No country can rely on a demographic dividend forever.

Our rapid economic growth would slow down eventually. The growth would instead come from technological progress and productivity improvement.

To achieve technological progress, we have independent innovation and can also introduce, absorb and digest the experience from other countries and then re-innovate.

Through reform, we should target institutional dividends. Currently there are still many institutional obstacles that are hindering efficiency.

Q: What would be the biggest challenges and risks for carrying out reforms?

A: The reform could affect vested interests. We need political courage and wisdom to tackle vested interests, a subject mentioned at the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.