Clouds Over Half the Sky

Abstract

This article addresses the question of why despite the enormous success achieved by China in economic growth there are significant indicators showing relatively adverse life situations for women in many respects. A falling proportion of women in the population, unfavourable employment situation, disparity in wages, inadequate representation of women in political leadership are some of the indicators of the negative fallout of the Chinese growth story even as women too have benefited from the substantial improvement of Chinese people’s livelihood conditions during the recent decades. Based on field visits to Wuxi over a thirty-year period and using macro data we argue that the Chinese experience raises serious questions about the pattern of economic growth that has been adopted by the Chinese leadership and advanced globally in recent years.