China turns to age-old solution for rural elderly
Reuters
2013-05-19
Views 123
Two years short of 70, Zhang Guosheng is planning to live out his days at this village care home in central China.
But in a new scheme to deal with rural China's huge ageing population, he is in fact not yet the cared-for, but still the carer.
His charge, 81-year-old Zhang Shouzhi, is near-deaf, immobile, and has no family in the village to care for him. And he's far too poor to afford professional care.
This old-age care model began in their small village of Qiantun, and with government backing is set to go nation-wide.
(SOUNDBITE)(Mandarin) 68-YEAR-OLD ZHANG GUOSHENG SAYING:
"At the moment, I can help him. When I am old, a new, younger resident will come here and they can help me. This is what we all hope for."
China's economic miracle has sent millions of rural young to booming cities in search of work and better lives, but most elderly have been left behind.
Those aged over 60 account for around 14 percent of China's rural population. That'
But in a new scheme to deal with rural China's huge ageing population, he is in fact not yet the cared-for, but still the carer.
His charge, 81-year-old Zhang Shouzhi, is near-deaf, immobile, and has no family in the village to care for him. And he's far too poor to afford professional care.
This old-age care model began in their small village of Qiantun, and with government backing is set to go nation-wide.
(SOUNDBITE)(Mandarin) 68-YEAR-OLD ZHANG GUOSHENG SAYING:
"At the moment, I can help him. When I am old, a new, younger resident will come here and they can help me. This is what we all hope for."
China's economic miracle has sent millions of rural young to booming cities in search of work and better lives, but most elderly have been left behind.
Those aged over 60 account for around 14 percent of China's rural population. That'
Report form
RELATED VIDEOS
