Left-behind children in China
[1][2][3] Before the 2000s, few mothers questioned the caregiving practice of leaving children in the care of older relatives while they migrated for work prospects.
Six south and central provinces, including Sichuan, Anhui, Henan, Guangdong, Hunan, and Jiangxi, take up 52% of the left-behind child population.
In some cities where a school enrollment point system are implemented, educational resources in urban areas are not readily accessible to migrants and left-behind children.
[10][11] The lack of infrastructure and parental support have led to additional challenges for left-behind children including quality education, physical well-being, and healthy social relationships.
According to a report published by National Bureau of Statistics of China, the family structure can be divided into two main categories: (I) Children staying with a single parent due to migration take up 47.14% of the population, within which the father is three times more likely to migrate for work, hence leaving the mother and other family members with the left-behind child.
[16] See more in Wikipedia article: Hukou The Household Registration System is an institution implemented in China which requires its citizens to register and record as residents of a particular area in the unit of family.
The severity of negative consequences that might experience by left-behind children in China depend on the child's age, gender, and family economic resources.
When caregivers lack the financial resources to afford school fees, nutritious food, and other basic needs, left-behind children are likely to face challenges with well-being.
Lower-income households are also more likely to require left-behind children to engage in farm work, resulting in exclusion from social and academic activities.
[26][27] Left-behind children exhibits more symptoms of depression and anxiety; stronger sense of feeling abandoned, anguished, suffering, and inferior.
[32] They likewise show consistent low scores on primary school exams which potentially deter chances of a better future.
Additionally, when parents migrate, these children's participation in housework and farming increases, leading to lesser time spent for academic pursuits.
[43][44] After the 2015 tragedy, local government officials in Bijie, which has 260,000 left-behind children, issued a request to parents to return home.
Children's Clubs offering "play and educational activities under the care and supervision of local volunteers" have shown positive outcomes.
A randomized trial of early childhood development centers in villages in Shaanxi Province is expected to start yielding data in 2018.
[49] Besides government initiatives, private individuals including Jack Ma has called for other entrepreneurs to make increased investments and financial contributions to rural boarding schools in their home provinces.
[53] The tasks defined in the document include: The policy aims to In 2016, the Ministry of Civil Affairs established an office to protect left-behind children.
Since the campaign commenced in November 2016, 16,000 left-behind children who had dropped out of school have resumed their education, and 177,800 who were previously unregistered have been registered on national household records.
The system enables professionals to share data about the child subsistence allowance, impoverished households and people with disabilities.
[55] In Southwest China's Guizhou Province, left-behind rural children use smart wristbands with GPS for tracking and protection.
