Exploring the Path to Improving the Social Security System and Narrowing the Wealth Gap

Yunhe Yang ()
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Yunhe Yang: Jinan Thomas School

A chapter in Proceedings of the 2025 International Conference on Financial Innovation and Marketing Management (FIMM 2025), 2025, pp 942-947 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract China’s rapid economic growth over the past four decades has been accompanied by a widening wealth gap and systemic inequities in access to education, healthcare, and employment. With a Gini coefficient of 0.466 for income and 0.704 for household net assets, inequality is entrenched through housing disparities, digital economy monopolies, and intergenerational poverty. The fragmented social security system exacerbates these challenges, as evidenced by urban-rural divides in medical reimbursement rates (72% vs. 55%) and pension benefits (72% vs. 18%), alongside insufficient fiscal investment (2.8% of GDP). This study proposes a triple reform strategy to transform China’s social security system into an “empowerment engine” for common prosperity. Key measures include expanding coverage to gig workers and migrants via portable benefits, harmonizing urban-rural healthcare reimbursement, and modernizing governance through blockchain technology. Phased goals aim to reduce the Gini coefficient to 0.45 by 2025 and below 0.4 by 2030, supported by increased fiscal redistribution (5% of GDP) and unified legal frameworks. By addressing institutional fragmentation and leveraging digital innovation, the reforms seek to narrow wealth disparities, enhance intergenerational equity, and foster sustainable social protection.

Keywords: Social Security System; Wealth Gap; Urban-rural Inequality; Governance Modernization; Common Prosperity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.2991/978-94-6463-874-5_109

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