The missions of the National Population and Family Planning Commission are:
1. To propose guidelines and policies for the national family planning programmes; draft laws and regulations related to population and family planning; assist the related departments to formulate social and economic policies so as to promote the implementation of comprehensive approaches for population and family planning programmes.
2. To engage in research on national strategies for population development; draft medium and long-term programmes and annual plans for the national family planning programmes according to the objectives of population programmes set by the State Council; set up national plans for family planning programme development; take charge of national statistics on family planning; organize and implement national sampling surveys on family planning; and participate in analysis and researches on national demographic statistics.
3. To develop and implement national programme for family planning research; organize comprehensive and perspective studies on major population and family planning issues.
4. To formulate national programmes for education and publicity on population and family planning; organize and implement national educational and publicity activities on population and family planning.
5. To take charge of technical services of family planning; formulate programmes and standards related to reproduction, fertility regulation and infertility; assist health departments to implement programmes for healthier babies; direct and supervise technical services and contraceptives delivery of family planning.
6. To draft budgets and final accounts for family planning administrative expenses and capital construction at central level as well as make needs assessment of contraceptives; and monitor finance and state assets of institutions affiliated with the Commission.
7. To develop and implement programmes for team-building, education and training for personnel in the population and family planning system.
8. To oversee international exchanges and cooperation in population and family planning; take charge of international collaboration projects in population and family planning.
9. To guide civil societies related to population and family planning.
10．To undertake other missions assigned by the State Council.
(Further missions, from March 2003)
1. To continue to undertake the original missions assigned to the State Family Planning Commission (mentioned as above item 1 to 10).
2. To Enhance strategic and perspective studies on major population and family planning issues, such as scale, development trends, quality, and structures of population, etc, so as to promote the implementation of comprehensive approaches for population and family planning programme, and facilitate coordinated and sustainable development between population, economy and society.
3. To take charge of the newly assigned missions, i.e. to draft strategies and policies on population development; coordinate the related departments to solve the problems of unbalance sex ratio at birth; and promote the development of reproductive health industry.
The Challenges Ahead
1. Problems in population quantity, quality and structure make China’s population issue unprecedentedly complex.
Although the total fertility rate in China is noticeably below replacement level, the net increase is still as much as 10 million per year, owing to the large base. For a considerable period of time in the future, the country's population will continue to grow. The excessive size of the population will continue to be an important factor causing an acute conflict between population and socioeconomic development, environment and resources.
The problem of inadequate population quality cannot be fundamentally solved in a short period of time, while structural imbalances are deteriorating. The aging population is increasing D those aged at 65 and above make up 7.83% of the population in 2001 from 5.80% in 1990. In addition, sex ratio at birth is on the increase, and AIDS is posing a serious threat to the safety of the population.
These problems pose unprecedented challenges to China in its effort to achieve sustainable population and socioeconomic development. They also pose a grave challenge to China's stated goal of building of an overall Xiaokang society.
2. Resource shortages and developmental imbalances will continue to exist for a long time.
Being a developing country, China will suffer from resource shortages and unbalanced development for a long time. Imbalances between economic growth and the growth of national wealth, between social and economic development, and between different parts of the country are facts that China must live with.
Currently, about 94% of the population resides on 43% of the country's landmass in the eastern and southern parts. The rural population accounts for 61% of the total population, indicating that the great majority of people are living with a low level of social and economic development. The degree of urbanization in China is very low. Great differences in maternal mortality rate, infant mortality rate and hospital delivery rate exist between the underdeveloped and the more developed coastal areas.
The pressure on employment has become greater and an increasingly aging population means more resources will have to be allocated to support them (old dependency ratio grew from 8.75% in 1990 to 11.25% in 2001). Much of the aged population live in rural areas where the social security system is not well-established.
Implementation of the family planning program is also uneven among different areas. In some places, due to serious under-funding, family planning work has made little headway.
3. Much remains to be done in reforming and innovating the family planning program.
With marked progress in economic reform and steady advancement of political reform, China has entered a new important era. The new administration headed by President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao have called for further improving the macroeconomic regulating system, the administrative system and legal system. This means China has moved beyond mere economic reform.
The new situation has brought to the family planning program many new issues and challenges. Therefore, the reform and innovation of the family planning program must continue. The Chinese government called for the construction of an all-round well-off society and coordinated development between urban and rural areas, between different regions, between economic and social development, between man and nature, and between domestic growth and opening to the outside world. These are all closely related to the need to advance comprehensive reform, financial input and personnel reform on the population and family planning program.
The Chinese government has always been concerned about and placed emphasis on sustainable development between population and economy, society, resources and environment. In 1994, the government formulated China's Agenda 21 and identified priority projects, defining overall human development as a key goal and fundamental principle for China's social development. In recent years, after summing up the experiences and lessons over the past 25 years of reform and opening-up, the government has further put forward the goal of building a well-off society for all and achieving modernization with the establishment of a strong, prosperous, democratic, and civilized socialist country by the middle of this century.
The starting point for China to tackle the population and development issue is as follows:
--Stick to a path of population and development with Chinese characteristics, in light of its own national conditions (i.e. a large population, scarce per capita natural resources, relatively backward economic and technological development) and draw on the experiences of other countries;
--Adhere to the strategy of sustainable development and solve the population problem through development, so as to realize coordinated development between population and economy, society, resources and environment and between modernization of the country and the full development of human beings;
--Fully realize basic human rights, integrating the general principles of human rights with China's national conditions, i.e. giving priority to rights to subsistence and development while improving people's civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights and freedoms;
--Respect different cultural backgrounds, religions, customs and ethics;
--Formulate and implement population plans and policies to promote equal opportunities for all members of society and achieve the UN Millennium Development Goals while giving full consideration to the priority areas of development and the compatibility of conditions, rights and obligations.
The Chinese government will keep on implementing the ICPD Programme of Action and the UN MDGs, take concrete measures to advance reform and innovation and open a new vista for population and development. These steps include:
--Ensuring the accomplishment of state strategic study on population development;
--Speeding up the establishment of the pilot project of "providing social support for some rural households practicing family planning", and scaling up the livelihood promotion program of "fewer births, faster affluence";
--Addressing the imbalanced sex ratio at birth and actively implement the pilot "Girl Care" project;
--Carrying out comprehensive reform of family planning program by shifting the focus from an administrative approach to an approach that provides RH/FP quality services to women, adolescents, the elderly and migrants;
--Guaranteeing the right of clients to informed choice of contraceptive methods;
--Encouraging public participation in RH/FP programmes and ensuring access to quality RH/FP services for all people, especially those in remote areas and disadvantaged or marginalized groups in urban areas.
By 2005, the total population of the country (excluding Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan) is expected to be controlled within 1.324 billion. The people's life will become better off. The average annual natural increase rate of the population will not exceed 9 per thousand, and maternal mortality rate will be reduced to around 42 per 100,000 live births. The nine-year compulsory education will be universally applied to poverty-stricken areas and areas inhabited by ethnic minority groups. In urban areas and rural areas where conditions permit, a preliminary social security system will be established.
By 2010, the total population of the country (excluding Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan) will be controlled within 1.4 billion. The people's life will be more prosperous; the health of the newborn population will be substantially improved and the sex ratio at birth will become normal. People of reproductive age will be able to enjoy the basic reproductive health services and informed choice of contraceptive method will be universally practiced. Great efforts will be made to solve problems brought by population aging and a preliminary social security system that covers the whole society will be established.
By the mid-21st century, the population of China will peak at 1.6 billion. After that, it will start to decline slowly. The health and educational level of the population will be improved considerably. Senior middle school and university education will be popularized. A complete social security system will be established. Population distribution and employment structure will become more rational and urbanization will increase significantly. The people will live a well-off life with the per capita income reaching the level of medium-developed countries. Society will be more civilized and a balance will be struck between population and economy, society, natural resources and environment. The nation, in short, will have achieved modernization.