In China, a picture of increasing investment in the care system is clear, with numerous care policies introduced over the past two decades. However, China’s socio-economic shifts—declining birth rates, rapid aging, regional migration, urbanization, and expanding informal sector— are driving greater demand for care. Smaller households and a rising dependency ratio have reduced families’ capacities to provide care, placing a heavier burden on women and underscoring the need to better understand its care system.  

This project aims to advance care policies—spanning childcare, elder care, and disability care—in China through evidence on actionable, costed, gender-transformative policy models. It seeks to inform decisions for a sustainable and equitable care system by conducting a comprehensive analysis of China’s care system, examining existing policies, challenges, and opportunities; identifying global best practices; defining context-sensitive care policy models; assessing governance, costs, and economic impacts of reforms; and recommending evidence-based, gender-transformative actions to advance equitable care policies. 

Research findings and recommendations will provide quality evidence to assist the UN China Working Group on Family-Friendly Policies and Care and Support and partners in advocating for a transformative care system in China. They will also inform discussions with relevant ministries and stakeholders at national and subnational levels in China. 

The study was commissioned by UNICEF China and UN Women China and is conducted in partnership with Lingnan University.