Originally published 26 February 2004

A high-ranking delegation of officials from China’s Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MOLSS) are visiting the University’s Institute of Employment Research today to research policies and measures adopted in recent years to promote employment in the UK.

The eight-person delegation includes Mr Yu Faming, the Director General of the Ministry's Department of Employment and Vocational Training, Ms Zhang Lijie, the Deputy Director of the Ministry's Division of Administrative Supervisions on Law Enforcement and representatives from the Shangdong, Hunan and Sichuan provinces.

Within the next 16 years the People’s Republic of China is aiming to achieve annual economic growth of 7.2% bringing the country’s GDP from a current level of USD1,000 to USD3,000 by the year 2020.

The aim is to urbanise 50% of the country by that time, currently 36.2% is urbanised – which in UK terms is the same percentage as in 1850.

Achieving these targets will mean the largest human migration in history as several hundred million farmers join non-agricultural sectors. The ongoing transition from planned to market economy means that state workers in industry also face an uncertain future. MOLSS will play a major role in managing this transformation.

The MOLSS visit reflects the emphasis that Beijing is putting on job creation initiatives targeting groups of the population that have been marginalised by the reform process so far including women, ethnic minorities and the disabled.

The visit to the University has been organised by the Great Britain-China Centre, a Foreign and Commonwealth Office sponsored not-for-profit organisation promoting dialogue between Britain and China. The Centre works chiefly in the areas of law, governance, human rights and social-economic and structural reform.

Warwick’s Institute for Employment Research is one of Europe's leading centres for research in the labour market field. Its work focuses upon the operation of labour markets and socio-economic processes related to employment and unemployment in the UK at national, regional and local levels. It includes comparative European research on employment and training.

http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/ier/

http://www.gbcc.org.uk/