Managing a French hospital for dependent elderly people for many years, I had the opportunity to have varied exchanges with China. In this article, I propose an analysis of the situation of ageing in China and Franco-Chinese prospects for cooperation on the matter. The increasing number of elderly Chinese people today creates a situation without precedent, with which traditional family support is no longer able to cope. Because of improvements in the standard of living, Chinese society must provide good living conditions to the elderly. To respond to this socio-demographic evolution, China has begun to reform its social welfare system and must develop new services and accommodation for the elderly. With plenty of know-how, France can provide China with its expertise concerning the implementation of a structured system of care for the elderly.
Keywords
- gerontology
- China
- Chinese ageing
- socio-demographic Chinese evolution
- Franco-Chinese cooperation