农村养老成重大任务

Serving the elderly in rural areas a crucial task

农村养老成重大任务

The central authorities issued a comprehensive document last week guiding governments at all levels to cope with challenges posed by one of the largest and fastest aging populations in the world. Even the Law on Protection of the Rights and Interests of the Elderly says that coping with the challenge of aging population is China's long-term strategic task.

中央政府于上周发布了一份系统文件，指导各级政府积极应对全球人口老龄化的挑战。《中华人民共和国老年人权益保障法》也指出，应对人口老龄化挑战是我国的一项长期战略任务。

By 2050, China will have an aging population of 500 million. But since the ratio of elderly people in the rural population is higher than in urban areas, the aging population problem is more serious in rural areas. Also, due to the economic gap between urban and rural areas, senior citizens in the countryside face more difficulties, including weaker support from their children, serious health problems, relatively poor living conditions, and the risk of falling into poverty.

到2050年，中国老年人口将近5亿人。但由于农村的老年人口比例高于城市，因此农村的人口老龄化问题更为严重。此外，由于城乡的经济差距，农村的老年人面临更多的难题，包括子女提供的帮助更少、健康问题更严重、生活环境相对更差、列为贫困人口的可能性更大。

The 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China report advances that the aging population problem should be actively dealt with by building a better eldercare system, including a combined medical treatment and eldercare mechanism. And the Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th Communist Party of China Central Committee said the construction of a comprehensive eldercare system should be expedited by combining medical care and eldercare, and establishing better coordination between family and community eldercare systems.

党的十九大报告指出，应通过建立更完善的养老体系来积极解决人口老龄化问题，包括将医疗与养老机制相结合等举措。中共十九届四中全会表示，通过结合医疗和养老体系以及建立更协调的家庭和社区养老制度，我国将加快养老体系的全面建设。

The country's leadership has been paying special attention to the aging population problem, and has issued 80 documents and policies since 2013 to promote eldercare services, including those for senior citizens in rural areas.

我国领导人一直特别关注人口老龄化问题，自2013年以来，已发布80份文件和政策以完善养老服务，包括农村地区的养老服务。

During our research, we found that some rural areas have explored several ways to improve the eldercare system. For instance, Taikang county in Henan province has established a rural eldercare system that combines the efforts of the family, neighbors, village committees and other social forces in order to provide support for elderly people in rural areas according to actual conditions.

在调研过程中，我们发现部分农村地区已探索出几种改善养老体系的方法。例如，河南省泰康县已建立一种结合家庭、邻里、村委会以及其它社会力量的农村养老体系，并根据实际情况为农村老年人提供支持。

The 19th Party Congress as well as the Fourth Plenum of the 19th CPC Central Committee have advanced to build a better elderly care system. As a charity organization established in 1986 with the aim of serving elderly people nationwide, the China Aging Development Foundation has launched a series of eldercare projects－including those targeting disabled senior citizens.

党的十九大和十九届四中全会已取得进展，建立了更完善的养老制度。作为一家成立于1986年的慈善组织（宗旨是为全国的老年人服务），中国老龄事业发展基金会发起了一系列养老项目（包括针对残疾老人的项目）。

China has 16 million "left behind" elderly people in rural areas－who are the most vulnerable group of senior citizens as they lack adequate old age pension.

在我国，农村地区有1600万留守老人——他们没有足够的养老金，是最脆弱的老年人群体。