China's Prime Minister Li Qiang defended the reform and expansion of social security in the face of the challenges arising from demographic change, such as population ageing, technological advances and unemployment.
© Lusa
13/11/2026
by
Lusa
O prime Minister of China, Li Qiang, defended the reform and expansion of social security, given the challenges arising from demographic changes – such as population ageing, technological advances and unemployment.
The statement emerged during a meeting of the State Council (the Chinese Government), which focused on improving the system and “invigorating the social protection network”, advanced the official Chinese news agency Xinhua on Thursday night.
Li defended the gradual extension of social coverage, with priority for the extension of pension plans, both corporate (in terms of coverage) and individual (in terms of attractiveness), as well as the development of private health insurance and long-term care-oriented policies.
In addition, the Prime Minister advocated increased protection for workers with “flexible jobs” and “reinforcing the protection of rights” for those working in “new forms of employment”.
The head of the Chinese Government also supported the need to equate social protection offered to rural and urban inhabitants, to increase the effectiveness of unemployment benefit and China to establish a social assistance system structured by levels and categories.
At the same time, the Prime Minister stressed the need to “strengthen the long-term sustainability” of the system, while “accelerating the correction of its shortcomings”.
According to experts, one of the reasons why the Chinese economy faces internal demand problems is the absence of solid networks of protection for workers. This leads families to prefer to save resources for periods of greater financial difficulty.
The lack of coverage is particularly evident for the inhabitants of poorer provinces, including workers who migrate to rich coastal regions, and pensioners who live in rural areas.
In 2020 Li's predecessor, Li Keqiang, revealed that about 600 million people, over two fifths of the population, lived on a monthly income of only 1,000 yuan (136 euros) per month.