Life on the margins: how China's rural deprivation curbs its success

Life on the margins: how China's rural deprivation curbs its success

Too often our stories about China are dictated by the urban experience, probably because journalists inside and outside of China are often based in the big cities; Beijing specifically. Those who live in the cities also tend to be more educated, more privileged, and so able to dominate the global attention more.

That’s why I’m particularly keen to hear about the lives of those who still live in the countryside, or at least are still considered ‘rural residents’ by the Chinese government. They make up a sizeable proportion of the population, and you’ll hear that in my first question to my guest today, we discuss just how big this group is.

How do the poorest in China live today, considering the government has announced that there is no more extreme poverty? Just how wide are their gaps in living standards, education, health, compared to their compatriots who live in the cities?

Professor Scott Rozelle joins me on this episode. He is the co-director of the Stanford Center on China’s Economy and Institutions, a developmental economist who has been conducting research in China for over three decades. He is also the co-author of Invisible China: How the Urban-Rural Divide Threatens China’s Rise.

Further listening from the archive:
Second class citizens: the lives of China’s internal migrants: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/second-class-citizens-the-lives-of-chinas-internal-migrants/
Is China turning away from the world?: https://www.spectator.co.uk/podcast/is-china-turning-away-from-the-world/

Produced by Cindy Yu and Joe Bedell-Brill.

Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.


For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.


Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(122)

A father and son at the edge of the Chinese empire

A father and son at the edge of the Chinese empire

As a child, the New York Times journalist Edward Wong had no idea that his father had been in the People’s Liberation Army. But as he grew up, a second generation immigrant in the United States, Edwar...

16 Sep 202438min

Investigating China's 'historic' claims in the South China Sea

Investigating China's 'historic' claims in the South China Sea

The South China Sea has been an area of regular clashes and heightened tensions under the leadership of Xi Jinping. It seems that, every few months, Chinese naval or coastguard ships clash or almost c...

2 Sep 202443min

What would a second Trump presidency bring for China?

What would a second Trump presidency bring for China?

Trump is tough on China, but what really motivates his hawkishness? Does he care at all about China's human rights abuses? Or is he fundamentally a foreign policy disentangler, hoping to rein back Ame...

19 Aug 202430min

How oil became the latest Chinese food scandal

How oil became the latest Chinese food scandal

Whenever I go back to China, I try to eat as much as I can – delicious Chinese food that I can’t have outside of the country, whether childhood favourites or the latest food trends. But I’m often stru...

5 Aug 202452min

Why China loves Taylor Swift

Why China loves Taylor Swift

‘Swifties’, as Taylor Swift’s fans are known across the world, are extremely dedicated to the cause, and often estimated to drive up local economies wherever they flock, and Chinese fans are no differ...

22 Jul 202446min

Shock To The System (II): How China's electric cars dominated the world

Shock To The System (II): How China's electric cars dominated the world

The EU and US are turning up the pressure on Chinese made electric cars, as I discussed with my guest Finbarr Bermingham on the last episode. On this episode, I want to take a closer look at how China...

8 Jul 202434min

Shock To The System (I): Can the EU fend off the threat of Chinese electric cars?

Shock To The System (I): Can the EU fend off the threat of Chinese electric cars?

The EU and China are in the foothills of a trade war. After a seven month investigation, the European Commission has announced tariffs of up to 38 per cent on electric cars from China, citing that the...

24 Jun 202429min

How would Britain's Labour party change UK-China relations?

How would Britain's Labour party change UK-China relations?

In less than a month’s time, Britain may well have a new prime minister – and a different ruling party. Under 14 years of the Conservative party, the UK’s approach to China has swung from the sycophan...

10 Jun 202433min

Populært innen Politikk og nyheter

giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
aftenpodden-usa
forklart
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
popradet
stopp-verden
fotballpodden-2
dine-penger-pengeradet
det-store-bildet
rss-gukild-johaug
i-retten
nokon-ma-ga
hanna-de-heldige
e24-podden
rss-ness
aftenbla-bla
rss-dannet-uten-piano
frokostshowet-pa-p5
grasoner-den-nye-kalde-krigen