China’s rural pensions in focus as lawmakers fight for farmers’ fair share amid income gap

Appeals highlight a long-standing lack of benefits for elderly citizens outside cities, and proposals include leveraging state assets and new taxes to bridge the vast disparity

Some Chinese lawmakers and advisers are pushing to secure higher pensions for elderly farmers, underscoring the persistent income disparity between the country’s urban and rural residents.

“A pension of just over 100 yuan each month is really, really difficult” to live on, said Bi Lixia, a deputy of the National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s top legislature, who urged the government to raise the monthly minimum to 400 yuan for rural residents aged 70 or older.

Another deputy, Lei Maoduan, called for the basic pension for elderly farmers to be raised to 500 yuan over the next three years. He argued that, while farmers’ contributions to the nation’s social security scheme may be relatively small, they have made significant contributions to society through their labour and agricultural production.

While Beijing sees rural spending as a means to help drive China’s shift towards a consumption-led growth model, many in the countryside struggle to afford basic living costs.