Protection of Children in Difficulty in China during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Fang Zhao, Ning Zhu and Juha Hämäläinen
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Fang Zhao: School of Social Development and Public Policy, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
Ning Zhu: School of Social Development and Public Policy, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
Juha Hämäläinen: School of Social Development and Public Policy, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-19

Abstract: This study investigated the resilience of the Chinese child protection system in responding to the special needs of children in difficulty under the specific circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study applied qualitative document analysis of child protection administrative documents, in-depth interviews with 13 child protection professionals, and an in-depth case study of 14 children living in difficulty, complemented by relevant information available in the media. The results indicate that there are good policies in China’s child protection services but the organizational and functional fragmentation complicates implementation, suggesting a need for the development of bottom-up practices. The essential conclusion supported by these results is that the child protection system should be regarded and developed as a systematic project combining the legal, policymaking, and professional systems of child welfare services as well as governmental and non-governmental forces. As the COVID-19 pandemic has raised awareness of the need to develop the field of child protection holistically as an integrated system in terms of social sustainability in China, an international literature-based comparison indicates that the pandemic has also raised similar political awareness in other countries.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; child protection; children in difficulty; sustainable system; public health emergency (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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