Beijing |
|||
|
|
|
|
I. Basic Data |
|||
|
1. Name: Beijing Municipality 2. Area: 16,800 square kilometers 3. Population: 13.82 million (the 2000 Population Census) 4. Geography: Beijing is the capital of the People's Republic of China, located in the north of the Huabei (North China) Plain between east longitude 115° 25' E - 117° 30' E and north latitude 39° 28' N - 41° 05' N, in the north temperate zone. 5. Natural Resources: Beijing has a diversified physiognomy with plains, mountains and hills. The utilization of land is limited by the large areas of rocky mountains and the unfavorable quality of soil and inadequate water supply. At least 67 kinds of mineral resources have been discovered; iron and limestone, and some other minerals are mined. Forest coverage is less than the national average, and the population of wild animals has been reduced significantly. Additionally Beijing is rich in tourism resources. 6. Economy: As the national political and cultural center of the country, Beijing is economically relatively well developed; in 2000, GDP was 246,050 million Yuan, and the per capita GDP 22,000 Yuan. The total value of imports and exports in Beijing in 2000 reached 49.62 billion US dollars. The grain output totaled 1.442 million tons in the year. The total added value of the industrial sector was 73.7 billion Yuan, up 13.2 percent over the previous year. The city approved 1149 foreign-invested projects in the year, with the contracted foreign capitals amounting to 4.34 billion US dollars, up 77.6 percent and 1.4 fold respectively on the previous year. 7. People's life: Based on statistics at the end of 2000, there were 6.14 million people working as employees and 4.54 million workers. At the end of the year, the urban unemployment rate as calculated from unemployment registration was 0.75 percent. The employment rate of unemployed workers was 72.63 percent, that of laid-off workers, 69.68 percent, reaching the set target. The net per capita income of rural households was 4,687 Yuan, and the wages of staff and workers was 15,600 Yuan per person. The annual per capita disposable income for urban and town residents was 10,349.7 Yuan. Per capita consumption of all residents on average was 8493.5 Yuan, and for rural residents 3,441.3 Yuan. The saving deposits totaled 292.32 billion yuan. In terms of health services, there were 6176 health-care institutions, with a total of 69,000 beds and 103,000 health workers. 8. Education: In 2000, 133,000 new students were enrolled in senior high school. 95 percent of the students who graduated from junior high school entered senior high school. There were 23,000 new entrants of graduate students in colleges and universities in Beijing, up 37.5 percent over the previous year. The number of enrolled regular four-year college students totaled 75,000 in the year, up 26.8 percent. There were 104,000 new entrants of adult colleges and universities in the year, up 17.8 percent. The basic rate of the population aged from 18 to 22 years entering institutions of higher education reached 40 percent, top of China. Upon adjustment, regular colleges and universities in Beijing numbered 59; adult colleges and universities numbered 61; secondary vocational and technical schools numbered 393, and primary schools numbered 2169. The average number of students for four-year college courses and technical courses was 4789, an increase of 1132 from the previous year. Beijing's people have a relatively higher educational level than that of other regions. The enrollment and examination system was reformed, with the achievements of 9-years compulsive education solidified. |
|||
II. Population Situation |
|||
|
1. Size and Distribution Beijing, one of the biggest cities in China, had a total population in 2000 of 13.82 million, most of whom live in the plain areas, with fewer living in the mountain and hills. The population density in the city is the highest, with lower density in the outskirts of the city and even less in the distant suburbs. A total of 56 ethnic groups live in Beijing. 2. Population History According to the changes in population numbers by natural growth and social movement such as migration, floating population and administrative border expansion, the population of Beijing has gone through five periods as follows: The first period, 1949-1960, was characterized as the highest growth period. The city's population was increased to 3.18 million people mainly due to the expansion of city boundaries. The total population has grown rapidly with the annual growth rate being 5.3 percent in the 11 year period, i.e. growing from 4.14 million in 1949 to 7.32 million in 1960. The second period, 1961-1970, was defined as the low growth period, since a large number of workers and cadres who were recruited in 1958-1959, namely "the Great Leap Forward" period, returned to rural areas during the economically difficult period of 1960-1962. The increment of population in this period, including natural increase and net migration, was about 391,200 persons in 10 years. The yearly growth rate is only 0.52 percent. The third period, 1971-1978, showed some reduction in natural growth, but migration rebounded since some migrants returned to Beijing after economic growth resumed. The total population in Beijing increased by 784,000 persons in this period, with the annual growth rate being 1.2 percent. The fourth period, 1979-1990, was influenced by high growth caused by population momentum and the tide of migrants flowing into the city since China's opening and reforms. The population growth rates were expressed as cyclic changes, with the yearly average increasing by 1.6 percent. About 1.83 million people were added to the Beijing population in this period. The present period, from 1991 to date, could be characterized by low natural growth rates and large increments in population numbers. Even with a low population growth rate, with a base population of more than 10 million persons, the size of the increments in Beijing cannot be ignored. 3. Population Structure by Sex and Age The fourth population census shows that the sex ratio in Beijing was as high as 107.03 in 1990. But in 2000, the sex ratio became normal with 7.206 million males and 6.613 million females in a population of 13.82 million people, where the sex ratio was 109.0. In terms of age structure, those in the age group 0-14 totaled 1.878 million, or about 13.6 percent of the total. The number of people aged 15-64 was 10.786 million, about 78 percent. The elderly 65 years old and above totaled 1.155 million, or 8.4 percent of the total population. 4. Composition of Ethnic Groups According to the 2000 population census, of the people enumerated in Beijing, 13.229 million persons or 95.7 percent were of Han ethnic group, the 590,000 persons or 4.3 percent were of various minority ethnic groups. Compared with the 1990 population census, the population of Han people increased by 2.824 million persons, or 27.1 percent; while the population of various minority ethnic groups increased by 176,000 persons, or 42.5 percent. 5. Fertility Level and Changes The current fertility level in Beijing, which is not high, has the following characteristics. The first is fertility with regional variations. The fertility level in rural areas is higher than that in towns and cities. The second characteristic is that women in different occupations have different levels of fertility. The level of white-collar workers is lower than that of laborers. The third characteristic is that women with different levels of education have different levels of fertility. The fertility of women with a higher education is lower than that of women with lower education. In 2000, the crude birth rate (CBR) was 6.0 per 1,000 and the rate of natural increase was 0.9 per 1,000 in Beijing. Population projections show that the Beijing population will keep increasing in the next twenty years, even at low levels of growth. Owing to the decrease in the CBR, natural increase would further decline and the process of aging would accelerate. However, driven by the market economy, the population of Beijing city will expand continuously due to increasing levels of migration. 6. Mortality and Life Expectancy Mortality in Beijing has declined since the early 1950s. The current death rates in Beijing are relatively lower than that in other provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions of China. In 2000, the crude death rate (CDR) was 5.1 per 1,000 in Beijing. The death rate of males was higher than that of females and that of laborers was higher than white-collar workers. The death rates for illiterate and semi-literate people were the highest. The infant mortality rates were also at relatively low levels. According the 1990 census, in city districts and suburbs, except Mentougou District, life expectancy was 73 years for males. Most male life expectancies in these districts were higher than 75 years, and most female life expectancies were over 77 years. 7. Marriage Status, Family Size and Type The 1990 census shows that the percentage of unmarried men was greater than that of unmarried women, but the percentage of male spouses was lower than that of women. As could be expected, the percentage of divorce was almost the same for men and women, but the growth rate of divorced women was higher than that of divorced men. There was a significant difference in marital status among the different age groups. The percentage unmarried was higher in the younger age group. The divorce rate is the highest in the age group 30-49. The marital status among regions was characterized by diversity. The percentage of widows among those aged 15 and above in rural areas is higher than that in urban areas. In 1997 in Beijing, of the 5.343 million males and 5.387 million females aged 15 and over, about 1.172 million males and 0.88 million females were unmarried, 3.846 million males and 3.921 million females were married with their first spouses, 0.115 million males and 0.111 million females remarried, 0.072 million males and 0.065 million females were divorced, and 0.139 million were widowers and 0.408 million were widows. In terms of family size, the average size of a Beijing family is declining. The size of households in the city is smaller than in counties. Also the smallest family size was in cities, and the largest in the suburbs. Looking at family type, the majority are nuclear families with a couple and children, accounting for 58.58 percent of all families in Beijing in 1990. But the composition of family type has changed with social and economic development. It can be seen that one-couple families only are on the increase, while two-generation families tend to be in decline. The extended families, composed of three generations (relatives or non-relatives), are more common in the outskirts of the city, but with fewer such families in the outer suburbs. Currently the percentage of single-person households is rising. By the end of 2000, there were 4.176 million family households in Beijing, with a population of 12.145 million persons, accounting for 87.9 percent of the total population Beijing. The average size of a family household was 2.9 persons, or 0.3 persons less as against the 3.2 persons of the 1990 population census. 8. Aging of the Population Beijing's population started the process of aging at the end of the 1980s. From the beginning of the 1990s, population aging became more serious and the problems or issues caused by aging are getting more obvious. By the year 2000, the number of the elderly over 65 years increased to 1.155 million, accounting for 8.4 percent of the population. By the year 1997, the population of Beijing is an aging population with several characteristics as follows: First, the aged population is still relatively young. At present, among the persons aged 60 years and above, the percentage of persons aged 60-69 is about 66.7 percent, the percentage aged 70-79 is 28.3 percent, and the percentage of persons 80 and above is only 8.0 percent. Second, economic participation among the elderly is declining. The participation rate in 1997 was 11.8 percent, 4.8 percentage points less than in 1990. Third, the educational attainment of the elderly is fairly good; illiteracy and semi-literacy among the elderly has been declining dramatically in past years. By the year 1997, the illiteracy and semi-literacy rate among the elderly dropped to 36.8 percent. Fourth, the marriage status of the elderly is favorable. The proportion widowed has dropped to about 25.3 percent of the widowed elderly. The proportion of the elderly people who live with their spouses is 73.1 percent, including 6.1 percent who remarried. Less than 1 percent of the elderly were unmarried or divorced. 9. Composition of Educational Attainment The educational composition of Beijing's population has changed a lot since 1949. The proportion of the population with college or higher educational attainment has increased, and the proportion illiterate and semi-literate has declined dramatically. Usually the education level among males is higher than that among females, but now the educational gaps between males and females has become narrow. On the average, the education level of people living in urban areas is higher than for those in rural areas. Also the education level at younger ages is higher than that at older ages. But the illiteracy and semi-literacy for females is higher than males. According to the 2000 population census, of the people aged 6 and over in Beijing, 2.328 million persons or 17.5 percent had finished university education (referring to junior college and above); 3.199 million persons or 24.1 percent had received senior secondary education (including secondary technical school education and vocational senior middle school education); 2.343 million persons or 17.7 percent had had primary education (the educated persons included graduates and students in various schools). Compared with the 1990 population census, the following changes have taken place in the number of people with various education attainments per every 100,000 people: number of people with university education increased to 16,843 from 9300; number of people with senior secondary education increased to 23,151 from 18,987; number of people with junior secondary education increased from 30,551 to 34,391; and number of people with primary education decreased from 22,579 to 16,956. Of the people enumerated in Beijing, 585,000 persons were illiterate (i.e. people over 15 years old who cannot read or can read very little). Compared with the 10.9 percent of illiterate people in the 1990 population census, the proportion has dropped to 4.9 percent, or down by 6 percentage points. 10. Migration and the Floating Population Beijing has a great number of migrants from all over the country. There are two major reasons. One is the return of the "Educated Youth" who went to the countryside and mountains during the "Cultural Revolution" and came back to Beijing afterwards. Another reason is the large labor forces migrating to Beijing from other provinces seeking a job or doing business, since the gap in social and economic development is getting larger with regard to Beijing and other regions of the country. Meanwhile, population movements for studying or training, for marriage or joining family, for visiting friends or relatives are also playing a very important role in migration. The 1990 census round showed that the total number of migrants in Beijing was above 1 million, sometimes even reaching a peak of 1.5 million. Migration is much higher now than previously. The seasonal fluctuation of the population is disappearing, as the increases become more stable. The former migration pattern in which migrants made their move during the periods of the Spring Festival and summer, no longer exists. However, there are yearly cyclical changes. 11. Urban and Rural Population According to the 2000 population census, in Beijing, there 10.716 million urban residents, accounting for 77.5 percent of the total population; and rural residents numbered 3.103 million, accounting for 22.5 percent. Compared with the 1990 population census, the proportion of urban residents rose by 4.1 percentage points. 12. Population, Resources and the Environment The population explosion in Beijing brought about some serious problems. For example, the rapidly increasing population in Beijing has led to over-consumption. Meanwhile, the concentration of people in cities and towns caused changes in the population density of different regions. The situation of over-density in urban areas has become serious. The natural resources of Beijing are limited, especially land, fresh water and energy. The rapidly expanding population has led to imbalances in population, resources and environment, and created problems such as infrastructure shortage, environmental pollution, ecological imbalance. |
|||
III. Family Planning |
|||
|
In the early 1950s, Beijing tried to promote family planning, but the significant achievements in family planning have been reached only in the last three decades. Efficient control of population growth has strongly facilitated economic and social development. For a brief review of family planning performance in Beijing, the following periods need to be examined: Ideological Initiation (from the early 1950s to early 1960s) In the early 1950s, with the economy developing and the people's life and health status improved, the CBR in Beijing went up significantly. Meanwhile, the mortality rate went down dramatically. In November of 1954, the Ministry of Health of China issued "A Notice on the Issues of Improvement in Contraceptives and Abortion". At the same time, the Beijing Municipal Health Bureau informed all hospitals, district health stations, MCH stations to take responsibility for contraception, and to organize medical experts to provide contraceptive knowledge through the channels of newspaper or magazines. Owing to the lack of information, education and communication (IEC) in contraception, and without timely adjustment in the social welfare policies, only a few couples adopted contraceptive methods, even fewer in rural areas. In 1958, Professor Ma Yinchu and his "New Population Theory" were criticized in error. A great impact on the family planning work in Beijing was that the natural population growth rate remained at a high level. Start of Action (from the early 1960s to the end of the 1970s) Although the Beijing Commission of Family Planning and related organizations were established in 1963, all administrative organizations had almost collapsed since the 1966 "Cultural Revolution" started. After 1971, most organizations started to be rebuilt. Family planning leadership groups (or commissions) at the city, district and county levels were established in 1973. In October 1963, the Beijing Municipal Family Planning Leadership Group released "The Opinion on Promoting Family Planning in Further Earnest", which was fostered by the Beijing Commission of the Chinese Communist Party and the Beijing Commission of the People's Congress. The commitment to family planning by the Government at all levels in Beijing got significantly stronger. Since that time, the family planning work was put into the government's agenda and the population plan was included officially in the socio-economic development plan. Family planning policies were initiated, and family planning services started to be provided. The Beijing Institute of Family Planning established in 1964 enhanced their research and supervision on family planning techniques. The family planning work made great progress and the CBR in Beijing dropped markedly during this period. Proper Progress (from end of 1970s to early 1990s) After the Third Plenary Meeting of the 11th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party was held in 1979, the family planning work in Beijing began to perform in a manner which never happened before as more attention was paid by government leaders at all levels and related policies and regulations improved further. The law of "Beijing Family Planning Regulations" approved by the Beijing Standing Commission of the 9th People's Congress took action on June 1st, 1991. It shows that the family planning management and enforced implementation under the law was implemented in a standardized way. In 1998, Beijing start to adopt the Family Planning Objective Management Approach based on a systematic theory, which involved setting up targets for family planning and population control. In this period, family planning IEC had been popularized and deepened, and great progress was made in terms of contraceptive services and supplies. Family Planning Associations started to be set up at all levels, and developed as a network covering the whole area of Beijing playing the role of non-governmental organizations in family planning. Innovation and Stable Progress (from the early 1990s to the present) Facing the opening of China and reforms and the socialist market economy, the Beijing government tried to explore new approaches to improve family planning work actively, to implement the program of "Integrated Approaches" and "Three Emphasis", and to provide broadened family planning services. In mid-1993, the Beijing Family Planning Commission started to conduct the project called "Visiting a Thousand Households, Making a Hundred Friends" to assess the people's needs, to collect their suggestions, and to assist them in their daily life. In 1994, the Beijing Family Planning Commission proposed a new project, named "Hand in Hand, Heart to Heart, from Rural to Urban, for a Small and Happy Family". It encouraged people to help each other, no matter whether they are from rural or urban areas, in their daily life and in family planning. In rural areas, family planning workers visited households to help the single-child families and family planning adopters to get richer and happier, and in urban areas to provide family planning and reproductive health services based on community facilities. Since 1997, the Beijing government at all levels has continuously implemented its commitments, well known as "The Number One Leaders Take Responsibility for Family Planning". Great efforts have been made for promoting family planning IEC, training the family planning workers and staff, improving the facilities at the grassroots, and increasing the input for family planning. Following the State Family Planning Commission's pilot project, the quality of care emphasis in family planning has been spread in all city districts and counties. The Beijing family planning program has been reformed and transferred into a new stage, and is making further progress. Great achievements in family planning work could be summed up as follows: First, the rapidly increasing population has been controlled efficiently. From the 1950s to the 1960s, CBRs and rates of natural increase remained high. Except for individual years, the CBRs fluctuated from 30 to 40 per thousand and the rates of natural increase from 20 to 30 per 1,000. After carrying out the family planning program, birth rates and natural increase rates both declined. In 1963, these rates were as high as 43.41 per 1,000 and 35.30 per 1,000, respectively. But in 1997, the CBR fell to 7.9 per 1,000 and the rate of natural increase fell to 1.89 per 1,000. In 2000, the CBR is 6.0 per 1,000 and the natural growth rate is 0.9 per 1,000. Second, the concept of childbearing in people's mind has significantly changed. A new fashion of adopting family planning is taking shape in the whole city. More and more couples are going to have only one child. The percentage of single-child certificate holders reached 63.54 percent in 1997. More and more couples are receiving contraceptive methods. In 1997, the contraceptive users numbered 205.33 million, or 89.9 percent of eligible married women of childbearing age. Third, the total fertility rate (TFR) of women decreased. The TFR was 5.1 in the 1950s, 3.9 in the 1960s, and 1.9 in the 1970s. It had been reduced to 1.3 at the beginning of the1990s. Fourth, family size has tended to shrink. On average, there were 4.5 persons per household in 1964 and 3.69 in 1982, according to the second and third census. Family size dropped to 3.2 persons per household in 1990 when the fourth census was conducted, 1.3 persons and 0.49 persons less than the figures for the previous censuses respectively. The fifth census in 2000 showed, the average size of a family household was 2.9 persons. |
|||
References: |
|||
|
|||