Geography Edexcel Igcse Case Study Chinas One Child...

†¢ In 1970, China’s population of 830 million increased by 2.6%. To reduce this high rate of population growth, the Chinese government introduced ‘voluntary’ schemes, such as: ïÆ'Ëœ State-run family planning programmes. ïÆ'Ëœ State-sponsored advertising campaigns with the slogan ‘later, longer, fewer’, meaning marrying later, having longer gaps between babies, and fewer children. †¢ These schemes caused the birth rate to start falling. However, in 1979, the ‘one-child’ policy was introduced, meaning that couples who had more than one child would be penalised. Sometimes they would be sterilised or forced to have an abortion. †¢ If couples kept to having one child, they were given rewards, such as: ïÆ'Ëœ Cash bonuses. ïÆ'Ëœ Better childcare. ïÆ'˜â€ ¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Having only one child also means that families could provide a better education for their child, which meant that the new generation became better educated and therefore more able to find employment and escape the cycle of poverty. †¢ A better educated workforce also helped attract investment from TNCs later on and helped to economy to develop further. †¢ N.B the one-child policy was not the only thing that stimulated economic development. China’s communist policies relaxed, allowing more trading. This allowed industrialisation and investment from TNCs, which were attracted to China’s large, cheap labour supply, its large consumption and its good natural resources, e.g. coal. †¢ However, it has also had may unwanted consequences: ïÆ'Ëœ The Chinese tradition to prefer sons has caused widespread sex-selective abortion. ïÆ'Ëœ There are now 120 males to every 100 females. ïÆ'Ëœ Parents spoil their sons as they are an only child, and as a result he tends to be obese, demanding and delinquent. ïÆ'Ëœ And increasing shortage of women of marrying age has caused bartering (exchange of goods not money) for wives and even kidnapping of women to marry them in rural areas. ïÆ'Ëœ Young women are leaving the countryside and moving to towns and cities, as men are preferred for farm work. †¢ For these reasons, the ‘Care for Girls’ plan was introduced to change Chinese traditional attitudes towards the gender of women and reduce the