Yi Wang, a doctoral candidate at Columbia School of Social Work and a fellow of both the Columbia China Center for Social Policy and the Columbia Population Research Center, presented at the International Conference on Universal Child Grants held during February 6-8, 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland. This conference invited more than 300 government officers, policymakers, and researchers worldwide to share new evidence and debate the implementation of universal child grants and other cash transfer programs. The conference was co-convened by UNICEF, the International Labour Organization (ILO), and the Overseas Development Institute (ODI).
Yi Wang presented new research findings on the effects of China’s primary social assistance program – Minimum Livelihood Guarantee (Dibao) – on child poverty and education consumption for low-income households with children. She also discussed the impacts of simulated universal child grants on reducing child poverty and compared these results with those from Dibao. Her presentation revealed that universal child grants are more cost-effective in ameliorating child poverty than Dibao.
Yi Wang’s presentation was based on a new research study co-authored with Fuhua Zhai, Associate Professor at Fordham University and Research Associate at the Columbia China Center for Social Policy, and Qin Gao, Professor and Director of the Columbia China Center for Social Policy. Yi’s presentation inspired lively discussions about China’s social assistance and the potential for initiating universal child grants programs in China.
