The Social Policy Forum was organized by China Institute for Reform and Development (CIRD) and Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research (NIBR) in Haikou, Hainan December 1-2, 2012. This Forum has played an important role for many years as a platform for discussions of regional development of mutual interests as well as an important channel for contacts between China and Norway.
Photo: Arne Tesli, Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research
The main topic of the Forum this year was Enlarging the Middle-Income Group: Policies and Institutions. Among the topics that were discussed: Development of the middle income group – status and current trends; urbanization and the middle income group; imperative needs and basic objectives of enlarging the middle income group; citizenization of rural migrant workers; income and property transparency and structural tax changes; breaking constraints from vested interests and making breakthroughs in the income distribution system reform.
Forum participants included persons from: China Society of Economic Reform; National Development and Reform Commission; Research Office of the State Council; Chinese Academy of Governance; China Society of Administrative Reform; Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; Central University of Finance and Economics; Capital University of Economics and Business; China Institute of Industrial Relations. In addition, there were a large number of representatives of provincial research institutions, universities and other institutions.
Participants from abroad included representatives of the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Beijing; Royal Norwegian Consulate General in Guangzhou; Norwegian Tax Administration; Norwegian University of Science and Technology; Norwegian Business School; Hedmark Knowledge Park, Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research; GTZ China; British Consulate-General in Guangzhou; US Consulate General in Guangzhou; Consulate General of Canada in Guangzhou.
The Forum was covered by a large number of media agencies. Some of these were: Xinhua News Agency, with several branches; Guangming Daily; Economic Information Daily; China Economic Times; The Weekly Cross-strait Cooperation; China Economic Herald; China Daily; China News Agency; China Business News; Hainan Daily; People’s Daily Online; Dragon TV.
