China makes remarkable progress in gender equality, women empowerment: official

BEIJING - China has made remarkable progress in promoting gender equality and women empowerment, effectively ensuring women's rights in areas including politics, economy, culture and social life, a senior official said Friday.

Yang Wenzhuang, an official with China's National Health Commission, made the remarks during the launch of the State of World Population 2021 report in Beijing, released by the United Nations Population Fund.

The report offers a timely understanding of the world's population development in the past year, which is also an important reference for China's population development, Yang said.

In recent years, China has upheld the constitutional principle of equality between men and women, with more than 100 laws and regulations enacted or amended to better safeguard women's rights, according to a press release of the launch ceremony.

"Setting equality between men and women as a basic national policy, China has been constantly boosting gender equality and its harmonious development, protecting the lawful rights and interests of women and children, and attaching great importance to female empowerment," Yang said.

He added that China's infant mortality rate dropped to 5.4 per 1,000 in 2020 and the mortality rate of children under five years old fell to 7.5 per 1,000. The maternal death rate also showed a downward trend, with the number standing at 16.9 per 100,000.

"We hope that academic discussions and various forms of exchanges can provide a more useful reference for China in promoting the long-term balanced development of population," Yang said.