Conference on Urban Poverty and Social Safety Net in East Asia

Urban Poverty and Social Safety Nets in East Asia:
This project was initiated in 2003 and has been coordinated by Dr Zhang Yunling , Director of the Institute of Asia Pacific Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (Beijing). A conference was held in Beijing in June 2005. The objectives for this meeting are to contribute to a better understanding of emerging urban poverty issues in East Asia and discuss any issue that could be valuable to policy makers to deal with any challenges. The participants include Chinese local authorities, local experts, and international experts.

Overview
Urbanization has always accompanied economic development, bringing with it a distinctive set of problems. Between 1975 and 2000, the urban share of the total population in developing countries increased from 25 to 40 percent, and a further increase to 53 percent is expected by the 2025. In the East Asia and Pacific region (excluding Japan), the urban population is expected to rise 3.75% annually, increasing from 35.4% of the population in 2000 to 53.4% in 2030. Underemployment and lack of opportunity in rural areas have spurred massive migrations to urban areas in search of regular employment; they come to live at the margins of society. This process of marginalization can continue over generations, especially since those affected are unable to make the investment in human capital, especially in education and health care that would make upward social mobility possible for their children. In addition, in the transition economies, the restructuring of stat-owned enterprises (SOEs) has led to widespread job-loss, further increasing the marginalized urban population.

Reporting
The published report is already distributed to all participants and may be posted on the website shortly.

Papers presented

 

“Urban Poverty and the Creation of Social Safety Net in East Asia”, by Zhang Yunling, Project Coordinator, Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing, China. & D. Lippit, Professor of Economics, University of California, Riverside, USA.

“Urban Poverty and Effectiveness of social Safety Net in Indonesia”, by Tulus T.H. Tambunan, Director, LP3E-KADIN INDONESIA.

“Urban Poverty and Social Safety Net Program in the Philippines”, by Exaltacion E. Lamberte, Professor of Sociology and Director, Social Develipmetn Research Center, De La Salle University, Manila, Philippines.

“Urban Poverty and Social Safety net in Thailand”, by Suwattana Thadaniti, Director, Chulalongkorn University Social Research Institute (CUSRI), Bangkok, Thailand.

“Revisiting Urban Poverty and the Issue of Social Protection in Malaysia”, by Dr. Ragayah Hajin Mat Zin, Director, Institute of Malaysian and International Studies (IKMAS), University Kebangsaan Malaysia. Selangor. Malaysia.

“Urban Poverty and the Economic Policies in ROK”, by Chul-In Lee, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Konkuk University, Seoul, Korea.

“Merging Urban Poverty in China”, by Yan Hao, Research Fellow, Research Institute of Economics and Social Development, National Development and Reform Commission, China

“The Development of Social  Safety Net System in China”, by Chen Xin, Institute of Sociology. Chinese Academy of social Sciences, Beijing, China.

 

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