|
China LIVING STANDARDS
Progress since 1949
Before 1949 the Chinese economy was characterized by widespread
poverty, extreme income inequalities, and endemic insecurity of
livelihood. By means of centralized economic planning, the People's
Republic was able to redistribute national income so as to provide
the entire population with at least the minimal necessities of life
(except during the "three bad years" of 1959, 1960, and 1961) and
to consistently allocate a relatively high proportion of national
income to productive investment. Equally important to the quality
of life were the results of mass public-health and sanitation
campaigns, which rid the country of most of the conditions that had
bred epidemics and lingering disease in the past. The most concrete
evidence of improved living standards was that average national
life expectancy more than doubled, rising from around thirty-two
years in 1949 to sixty-nine years in 1985
(see Mortality and Fertility;
Health Care
, ch. 2).
In 1987 the standard of living in China was much lower than in
the industrialized countries, but nearly all Chinese people had
adequate food, clothing, and housing. In addition, there was a
positive trend toward rapid improvements in living conditions in
the 1980s as a result of the economic reforms, though improvements
in the standard of living beyond the basic level came slowly. Until
the end of the 1970s, the fruits of economic growth were largely
negated by population increases, which prevented significant
advances in the per capita availability of food, clothing, and
housing beyond levels achieved in the 1950s
(see Population
, ch.
2). The second major change in the standard of living came about as
a result of the rapid expansion of productivity and commerce
generated by the reform measures of the 1980s. After thirty years
of austerity and marginal sufficiency, Chinese consumers suddenly
were able to buy more than enough to eat from a growing variety of
food items. Stylish clothing, modern furniture, and a wide array of
electrical appliances also became part of the normal expectations
of ordinary Chinese families.
Data as of July 1987
|
