An important family planning programme
China Population Today 12(2): 5
1995
PMID: 12346288 Document Number: 515020
In January 1995, the central government of China endorsed the State Family Planning Commission's National Family Planning Programme (1995-2000). This five-year plan will direct implementation of the program during the 1990s. China is now experiencing unbalanced socioeconomic development, thereby hindering passage of a uniform national family planning law. Still, China is doing much to improve the family planning program and to eliminate harsh, inappropriate, or bad practices at the local level, practices which may go against the principle of voluntary participation. The new National Family Planning Program is a transitional phase that will standardize and direct family planning implementation during the end of the 1990s. It has 10 parts and 40 subpoints. Part one covers current population successes: reducing fertility, slowing population growth, improving the quality of life, diminishing the pressures of population on resources and the environment, and improving women's status. Part two addresses tasks and goals: to lower the rate of natural increase to less than 10/1000 by 2000 and to limit the size of the total population to 1.23 billion by the end of 1995 and to 1.3 billion by 2000. The remaining eight parts are strategies to achieve the goals. A theme that is mentioned more than once among the strategies is dependence on the use of information, education, and communication (IEC) to achieve the goals. Some other themes addressed were rural areas, scientific research, management of population and family planning programs, funding, and training.