Report on Women and Children's Health Development in China (2011)

Foreword

Women and children's health is the precondition and foundation of sustained human development.Women and children's health indicators are not only the most fundamental world-recognized health indicators, but also the important comprehensive indicators to measure socioeconomic development and human development.

Under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party and the Chinese government, the health of women and children in China has kept improving. During the "Eleventh Five-Year Plan" period,the national maternal, infant and under-five child mortality rates decreased respectively from47.7/100,000, 19.0 ‰ and 22.5‰ in 2005 to 30.0/100,000, 13.1‰ and 16.4‰ in 2010. However, there are still significant gaps in women and children's health between urban and rural areas,between different population groups and between different regions, problems threatening the health of women and children are still serious, and there is a relative lack of service capacity in the grassroots women and children's health system.

Meanwhile, there are also huge opportunities for women and children's health development. Major indicators on women and children's health have been incorporated into the "Twelfth Five-Year Plan". The Plan has specific demands for comprehensively strengthening women and children'shealth. The State Council has promulgated the guidelines on women and children's development for 2011-2020, painting a blueprint on the development of women and children's health for the next 10 years and providing a strong policy guarantee for the development of women and children's health. The ongoing health care system reform has brought a significant opportunity forwomen and children's health development. The Chinese Government's commitment to achieving the United Nations Millennium Development Goals has provided favorable conditions for gaining more support.

Women and children's health development has bearing on the well-being of every household. To promote such development and protect women and children's health, the joint efforts of the whole society are needed. The Report on Women and children's health Development in China(2011)is compiled and released in the hope of reflecting the whole picture of the health status of women and children and the women and children's health development in China, to guide all circles in the society and the international community to pay more attention to the health of women and children, and create a good atmosphere favorable to women and children's health development.It is also hoped that the large number of medical and health workers, in particular the women and children's health workers recognize the situation, build up confidence, overcome difficulties and continue making efforts to promote the sound and rapid development of women and children's health, and make greater contribution to maintaining women and children's health, family happiness and social harmony.

                                                                                                             Zhu Chen, Minister of Health