Various-Population/Experts

Shotlist

FILE: China – Exact Location and Date Unknown (CCTV – No access Chinese mainland)
1. Aerial shot of pedestrians on street
2. Various of pedestrians

FILE: Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, southwest China – Feb 25, 2018 (CCTV – No access Chinese mainland)
3. Various of nurses taking care of newborns

Tel Aviv, Israel – April 21, 2023 (CGTN – No access Chinese mainland)
4. SOUNDBITE (English) John Gong, Vice President, Research and Strategy University of International Business and Economics-Israel:
“If you look at the advanced economies, especially, I think, the Scandinavian countries, the population (growth) has been slowing down dramatically, and this is nothing unique about China. It happens in many advanced economies. (It was) happening in Japan, happening in South Korea. So, this is an overall trend that’s kind of difficult to fight against. It’s not necessarily a bad thing.”

FILE: Qionghai City, Hainan Province, south China – 2020 (CCTV – No access Chinese mainland)
5. Various of robot at exhibition

FILE: Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, northeast China – Date Unknown (CCTV – No access Chinese mainland)
6. AI-powered machines at exhibition
7. Various of robot arms on production line

Tel Aviv, Israel – April 21, 2023 (CGTN – No access Chinese mainland)
8. SOUNDBITE (English) John Gong, Vice President, Research and Strategy University of International Business and Economics-Israel:
“Having said that, I think this time around, it might get a little bit different because all of a sudden, we see a rapid development of robotics, development of artificial intelligence. So, as I see it, there’s a structural change in the economy brought about by technology. We are entering into an era where the labor market is undergoing a very fundamental and revolutionary transformation, in my view. In other words, it’s not so much the quantity of the labor force that really matters. It’s the quality, as well as its interaction with the application of machines, robotics, or artificial intelligence. It’s the right combination in the labor market that’s actually winning the economic competition.”

FILE: Guangdong Province, south China – Jan 2023 (Guangzhou Broadcasting Network – No access Chinese mainland)
9. Various of machines operating, workers in factory

Vancouver, Canada April 21, 2023 (CGTN – No access Chinese mainland)
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Swaran Singh, visiting professor, Department of Political Science, University of British Columbia:
“All the developed countries have undergone this process of shrinking of population. But they have continued to be robust and powerful economies. So, productivity, yes, has a certain amount of link to the number of workforces that each nation has. But the productivity of the workforce also depends on how skilled and how productive they are, in which case, technology does play an important role.”

FILE: Beijing, China – Date Unknown (CCTV – No access Chinese mainland)
11. Aerial shot of cityscape

FILE: Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province, south China – Date Unknown (CCTV – No access Chinese mainland)
12. Aerial shot of cityscape, river, bridges

FILE: Jiangyin City, Jiangsu Province, east China – Date Unknown (CCTV – No access Chinese mainland)
13. Aerial shot of cityscape, river

Storyline

The slowing down in population growth is not unique in China but a global trend at present and high technologies are key for a country to survive economic competition rather than the quantity of labor force alone, said experts on Friday.

The United Nations predicts that India will overtake China as the world’s most populous country in a couple of months. But some Western media hype that China’s demographics will drag down the world economy.

In an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), John Gong, vice president of the Research and Strategy University of International Business and Economics-Israel, said that the rapid advancements in technology like robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) are changing the labor market, where the quality of workforce matters more than quantity.

“If you look at the advanced economies, especially, I think, the Scandinavian countries, the population (growth) has been slowing down dramatically, and this is nothing unique about China. It happens in many advanced economies. (It was) happening in Japan, happening in South Korea. So, this is an overall trend that’s kind of difficult to fight against. It’s not necessarily a bad thing,” said Gong.

Gong also reiterated that the combination of the labor market and the technologies is vital to win the economic competition.

“Having said that, I think this time around, it might get a little bit different because all of a sudden, we see a rapid development of robotics, development of artificial intelligence. So, as I see it, there’s a structural change in the economy brought about by technology. We are entering into an era where the labor market is undergoing a very fundamental and revolutionary transformation, in my view. In other words, it’s not so much the quantity of the labor force that really matters. It’s the quality, as well as its interaction with the application of machines, robotics, or artificial intelligence. It’s the right combination in the labor market that’s actually winning the economic competition,” said Gong.

Swaran Singh, visiting professor from the Department of Political Science, University of British Columbia, said that the developed countries have also undergone the shrinking of population, but the technology is crucial for them to remain as powerful economies.

“All the developed countries have undergone this process of shrinking of population. But they have continued to be robust and powerful economies. So, productivity, yes, has a certain amount of link to the number of workforces that each nation has. But the productivity of the workforce also depends on how skilled and how productive they are, in which case, technology does play an important role,” said the professor.