Improving the “Guaranteed Care for Infants and Young Children” Service System to Promote the Building of a Fertility-Friendly Society

A fertility-friendly society refers to one that, through continuously improving the policy system and public service system, provides comprehensive support for families of childbearing age, including economic incentive measures, guarantees of public services, and the shaping of a cultural atmosphere, so as to alleviate family pressure and thereby solve the problem of “being unable to have children, not daring to have children, and not wanting to have children.” The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC [1]1 The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC refers to the third plenary meeting of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, held in July 2024, which focused on further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese modernization. made clear strategic deployments regarding “improving the population development support and service system,” proposing to “focus on addressing aging and declining birthrates to improve the population development strategy, improve the population service system covering the entire population and the entire life cycle, and promote high-quality population development. Improve the fertility support policy system and incentive mechanisms, and promote the building of a fertility-friendly society.” [2]2 The quotation is from the “Communiqué of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC,” adopted on July 18, 2024.

生育友好型社会是指通过不断完善政策体系和公共服务体系，为育龄家庭提供全面的支持，包括经济上的激励措施、公共服务的保障以及文化氛围的塑造，以减轻家庭压力，进而破解“不能生、不敢生、不想生”的问题。党的二十届三中全会在“健全人口发展支持和服务体系”方面做出了明确的战略部署，提出要“以应对老龄化、少子化为重点完善人口发展战略，健全覆盖全人群、全生命周期的人口服务体系，促进人口高质量发展。完善生育支持政策体系和激励机制，推动建设生育友好型社会。”[1]

I. The “Guaranteed Care for Infants and Young Children” Service System Provides Basic Support for Building a Fertility-Friendly Society

一、“幼有所育”服务体系为生育友好型社会建设提供基础支持

The “guaranteed care for infants and young children” service system is a comprehensive public service provided by the government and society to ensure the health, education, and basic living needs of pregnant and postpartum women and infants and young children aged 0-6, from the pregnancy and childbirth period to the pre-school stage. It mainly involves three major themes: childbirth, child-rearing, and education. Aimed at reducing the pressure on families in raising infants and young children, increasing the population’s fertility level, and providing a high-quality growth environment for infants and young children through a complete service system for childbirth, child-rearing, and education, it is one of the important foundations for promoting a fertility-friendly society.

“幼有所育”服务体系是政府和社会为保障孕产妇及0-6岁婴幼儿，从孕产期到学龄前各阶段的健康、教育和基本生活需求所提供的综合性公共服务，主要涉及生育、养育、教育三大主题。旨在通过完善的生育、养育、教育服务体系，减轻家庭婴幼儿养育压力，提高人口生育水平，为婴幼儿提供优质的成长环境，是推动生育友好型社会的重要基础之一。

Improving the “guaranteed care for infants and young children” service system helps address the dual challenges of current population aging and declining birthrates. The improvement of the “guaranteed care for infants and young children” service system directly affects families’ fertility intentions; this service system is a key link in promoting population development. By providing high-quality childbirth, child-rearing, and education services, it can effectively reduce the pressure on families during the parenting process, increase young people’s willingness to have children, and thereby promote the optimization and balance of the population structure.

完善“幼有所育”服务体系有助于应对当前人口老龄化和少子化的双重挑战。“幼有所育”服务体系的完善直接影响家庭的生育意愿，这一服务体系是促进人口发展的关键环节。通过提供优质的生育、养育、教育服务，能够有效降低家庭在育儿过程中的压力，提高年轻人生育意愿，进而推动人口结构的优化与平衡。

Improving the “guaranteed care for infants and young children” service system can enhance families’ sense of gain, happiness, and security. Parenting is an important family responsibility, and the effective supply of childcare services can alleviate the burden of parenting. Especially for dual-income families, professional childcare services allow parents to find a balance between career and parenting, thereby improving overall quality of life. This enhancement of happiness is not only reflected in harmony within the family but also plays a positive role in the sustainable development of the national population.

完善“幼有所育”服务体系可以增强家庭的获得感、幸福感、安全感。育儿是家庭的重要责任，而托育服务的有效供给可以减轻育儿负担，特别是对于双职工家庭而言，专业托育服务能够让父母在兼顾事业和育儿之间找到平衡，进而提升整体生活质量。这种幸福感的提升，不仅体现在家庭内部的和谐，也对国家人口的可持续发展起到积极作用。

Improving the “guaranteed care for infants and young children” service system is an important measure for implementing the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC. The construction of this system helps promote the upgrading of China’s modern public service system, promote the equalization of basic public services between urban and rural areas, narrow regional development gaps, and provide support for the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity. In this process, governments at all levels, through policy support, resource investment, and service standardization construction, gradually improve the coverage rate and quality of services, thereby laying a solid foundation for the building of a fertility-friendly society.

完善“幼有所育”服务体系是贯彻落实党的二十届三中全会精神的重要举措。这一体系的建设，有助于推动我国现代公共服务体系的升级，促进城乡基本公共服务均等化，缩小地区发展差距，为实现国家治理体系和治理能力现代化提供支撑。在这一过程中，各级政府通过政策扶持、资源投入和服务标准化建设，逐步提升服务的覆盖率和质量，从而为生育友好型社会的建设奠定坚实基础。

II. Challenges Faced by the “Guaranteed Care for Infants and Young Children” Service System in Promoting the Building of a Fertility-Friendly Society

二、“幼有所育”服务体系在推动生育友好型社会建设中面临的挑战

Governments at all levels must pay high attention to “the building of a fertility-friendly society” and understand the real needs of the people. According to published fertility intention survey reports, the current “guaranteed care for infants and young children” service system faces the following challenges in promoting the building of a fertility-friendly society.

各地政府要对“生育友好型社会建设”予以高度关注，了解人民群众的真实需求。根据已发布的生育意愿调查报告，当前“幼有所育”服务体系在推动生育友好型社会建设面临以下挑战。

Insufficient supply of childcare service resources. Currently, there is a clear imbalance in the “guaranteed care for infants and young children” service system between urban and rural areas and between regions. Especially in rural and remote areas, the supply of childcare services is severely insufficient, unable to meet the actual needs of local families. In addition, although the government has invested in childcare services in recent years, overall resources such as funding, venues, and teaching staff remain insufficient. This directly leads to limited coverage of childcare services and uneven service quality. According to the survey results of the Mianyang City Bureau of Statistics in Sichuan Province, over 80% of respondents believe that high costs of childbirth and child-rearing and heavy economic burdens are the primary reasons affecting fertility intentions. The insufficient supply of childcare service resources not only limits the fertility intentions of families of childbearing age but also affects the balance of development between regions to a certain extent.

托育服务资源供给不足。当前“幼有所育”服务体系在城乡、地区之间存在明显的不均衡，尤其是农村和偏远地区，托育服务的供给严重不足，无法满足当地家庭的实际需求。此外，尽管近年来政府在托育服务方面有所投入，但总体上资金、场地和师资等资源仍显不足。这直接导致托育服务的覆盖面有限，服务质量参差不齐。根据四川省绵阳市统计局的调查结果，超过八成的受访者认为生育养育成本高、经济负担重是影响生育意愿的首要原因。托育服务资源供给不足不仅限制了育龄家庭的生育意愿，也在一定程度上影响了区域之间的发展均衡。

Issues of service standardization and conceptual limitations. Currently, the standardization and professionalization level of the childcare service system is not high, lacking a unified service quality standard and regulatory system. This leads to uneven service quality among childcare institutions, with some institutions even having safety hazards, affecting parents’ trust in childcare services. In addition, some families and social groups have cognitive misunderstandings about childcare services, believing that entrusting young children to external institutions for care will have adverse effects on children’s development. This conceptual limitation hinders the promotion and popularization of childcare services. The 2024 survey results on marriage and childbearing concepts among the childbearing-age population in Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province, show that about 63% of respondents have an open attitude towards childbearing, but the vast majority feel “confused” about how to raise and educate their children, with only 8% of respondents indicating they have detailed parenting plans.

服务标准化与观念局限性问题。目前，托育服务体系的标准化、专业化水平不高，缺乏统一的服务质量标准和监管体系。这导致了托育机构服务质量参差不齐，部分机构甚至存在安全隐患，影响了家长对托育服务的信任度。此外，部分家庭和社会群体对托育服务存在认知误区，认为幼儿交给外部机构抚育会对孩子的成长产生不利影响。这种观念上的局限性阻碍了托育服务的推广和普及。2024年浙江省宁波市育龄群体婚育观念调研结果显示，约63%的受访者对生育持开放态度，但绝大多数人对于如何抚育和教育子女感到“迷茫”，仅有8%的受访者表示他们有详细的育儿计划。

Dual pressure from family and society. During the parenting process, families, especially dual-income families, face the dual pressure of parenting and work. Many families, after having children, have to face the dilemma of being unable to balance career and parenting, which greatly reduces families’ fertility intentions. According to the survey report of the Mianyang City Bureau of Statistics, 40.4% of respondents believe that inadequate maternity allowances, leave, and employment security are also important reasons affecting fertility intentions. In response, the government and society need to provide more flexible support policies, such as increasing parental leave and improving flexible work systems, to help families alleviate parenting pressure.

家庭和社会的双重压力。育儿过程中，家庭尤其是双职工家庭面临育儿与工作的双重压力。许多家庭在生育后不得不面临职业与育儿难以兼顾的困境，这在很大程度上降低了家庭的生育意愿。据绵阳市统计局的调查报告，40.4%的受访者认为生育津贴、假期和就业保障不到位也是影响生育意愿的重要原因。对此，政府和社会需要提供更为灵活的支持政策，如增加育儿假期、完善弹性工作制度等，以帮助家庭缓解育儿压力。

Low coverage of diversified services. The existing childcare service model is singular, mainly concentrated in centralized childcare institutions in cities, unable to meet the diverse needs of different families, especially considering differences in economic conditions, cultural backgrounds, etc. The survey report of Zhushan County, Shiyan City, Hubei Province, shows that the current supply of childcare services for children aged 0-3 in Zhushan County is about 2.28 nursery places per thousand population, still far from the provincial government’s “14th Five-Year Plan” requirement of reaching 4.5 nursery places per thousand population by 2025. Therefore, it is necessary to encourage the development of multiple childcare models, including community-embedded childcare, family childcare points, etc., to provide more flexible and diverse choices and meet the individualized needs of different families.

多样化服务的覆盖率低。现有的托育服务模式单一，主要集中于城市的集中式托育机构，无法满足不同家庭的多样化需求，尤其是在考虑到经济状况、文化背景等方面的差异上。湖北省十堰市竹山县的调查报告显示，目前竹山县0到3岁的托育服务供给约为每千人口托位数2.28，距省政府“十四五”规划提出到2025每千人托位数达4.5的要求仍有较大差距。因此，需要鼓励多种托育模式的发展，包括社区嵌入式托育、家庭托育点等，以提供更加灵活多样的选择，满足不同家庭的个性化需求。

III. Solving the Parenting Dilemma: Implementing the Strategic Deployments of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee

三、破解育儿困境：贯彻二十届三中全会战略部署

The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC, in response to the many challenges currently faced by the “guaranteed care for infants and young children” service system, proposed a series of practical solutions aimed at solving the parenting dilemma through multi-level and multi-field measures, and promoting the building of a fertility-friendly society.

党的二十届三中全会针对当前“幼有所育”服务体系面临的诸多挑战，提出了一系列务实的解决方案，旨在通过多层次、多领域的举措，破解育儿困境，推动建设生育友好型社会。

First, strengthen financial support and reduce parenting costs to stimulate the fertility intentions of families of childbearing age. Governments at all levels should further increase financial subsidies, especially in rural and remote areas with tight funding, increase investment in childcare service facilities, and ensure fair development between urban and rural areas. Through measures such as tax and fee reductions, improving the childbirth leave system, establishing a childbirth subsidy system, and increasing tax deductions for parenting costs, the economic burden on families, especially dual-income families, can be alleviated. These policies will effectively stimulate the fertility intentions of families of childbearing age and promote the building of a fertility-friendly society.

首先，加强财政支持与降低育儿成本，激发育龄家庭生育意愿。各地政府应进一步加大财政补贴力度，特别是在资金紧缺的农村和偏远地区，增加托育服务设施的投入，确保城乡之间的公平发展。通过税费减免、完善生育休假制度、建立生育补贴制度、增加育儿成本的税收抵扣等措施，减轻家庭的经济负担，尤其是对双职工家庭。这些政策将有效激发育龄家庭的生育意愿，推动生育友好型社会的建设。

Second, enhance service supply and quality through public-private partnerships. Promote the development of public-private partnership models to expand the supply of childcare services in diverse ways. This embodies the strategic deployment of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC to “support the development of multiple models such as employer-run childcare, community-embedded childcare, and family childcare points.” On this basis, improve the standardization and normalization level of childcare services, establish and improve a regulatory system for service quality, ensure the safety and professionalism of childcare services, and provide families with high-quality and reliable childcare options. At the same time, provide vocational training and treatment guarantees for childcare practitioners to enhance the professional quality and stability of the teaching staff.

其次，通过公私合作提升服务供给与质量。推动公私合作模式的发展，以多样化的方式扩大托育服务的供给。这体现了党的二十届三中全会“支持用人单位办托、社区嵌入式托育、家庭托育点等多种模式发展”的战略部署。在此基础上，提升托育服务的标准化和规范化水平，建立健全服务质量的监管体系，确保托育服务的安全性和专业性，为家庭提供优质可靠的托育选择。同时，要为托育从业人员提供职业培训和待遇保障，提升师资队伍的专业素养和稳定性。

Third, improve birth-support policies and promote equitable urban-rural development. Improve the policy system for birth support, promote the flow of relevant public services with population movement, ensure the rational concentration and orderly flow of population between urban and rural areas and among regions, and guarantee that all families of childbearing age can enjoy equitable service support. This measure can help families of childbearing age obtain continuous service support during migration, avoiding the problem of service interruption due to changes in place of residence.

再次，完善生育支持政策，促进城乡公平发展。完善生育支持政策体系，推动相关公共服务随人口流动，确保人口在城乡之间和区域间的合理集聚与有序流动，保障所有育龄家庭都能享受到公平的服务支持。这一举措能够帮助育龄家庭在迁移中获得持续的服务支持，避免因居住地点变化而面临服务中断的问题。

Finally, strengthen publicity and education to create a birth-friendly social environment. Through media publicity and community education, enhance public and family understanding and acceptance of childcare services. Publicity and education should run through the entire process of policy implementation, so as to enhance the effectiveness of policy implementation and social support and understanding of childcare services, jointly promoting the building of a birth-friendly society.

最后，加强宣传教育，营造生育友好社会环境。通过媒体宣传和社区教育，增进公众和家庭对托育服务的理解和接受度。宣传教育应贯穿在所有政策实施过程中，以增强政策的实施效果和社会对托育服务的支持和理解，共同推动生育友好型社会的建设。

The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC [3]3 The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC, held in July 2024, focused on comprehensively deepening reform to advance Chinese-path modernization. has pointed the way for solving the childcare dilemma and improving the “childcare for all” service system. The government, society, and families should work together to implement various policies and measures, continuously enhance the fairness, accessibility, and quality of the “childcare for all” service system, and lay a solid foundation for building a birth-friendly society full of hope and vitality.

党的二十届三中全会为破解育儿困境、完善“幼有所育”服务体系指明了方向。政府、社会和家庭应共同努力，落实各项政策措施，不断提升“幼有所育”服务体系的公平性、可及性和质量，为建设一个充满希望和生机的生育友好型社会奠定坚实基础。

Conclusion

结语

Improving the “childcare for all” service system is the foundation for promoting the building of a birth-friendly society. The perfection of this system is not only a guarantee of family happiness but also a source of driving force for the long-term development of the country. By improving the supply of services, enhancing service quality, solving imbalances between urban and rural areas and among regions, and optimizing childcare support policies, the pressure of family childcare can be effectively reduced, and the willingness of families of childbearing age to have children can be stimulated. This not only helps to address the challenges of declining birth rates and population aging but also provides a solid foundation and strong impetus for social harmony and the sustainable development of the country.

完善“幼有所育”服务体系，是推动建设生育友好型社会的基础。这一体系的健全，不仅是家庭幸福的保障，更是国家长远发展的动力源泉。通过健全服务的供给，提高服务质量，解决城乡、区域间的不均衡问题，以及优化育儿支持政策，可以有效降低家庭育儿压力，激发育龄家庭的生育意愿。这不仅有助于应对少子化和人口老龄化的挑战，还能为社会和谐与国家可持续发展提供坚实的基础和强大动力。

References:

参考文献：

[1]1 The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC refers to the third plenary meeting of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, held in July 2024, which focused on further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese modernization. *Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Deepening Reform Comprehensively to Advance Chinese Path Modernization*, Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 2024, p. 37.

[1]《中共中央关于进一步全面深化改革 推进中国式现代化的决定》，北京：人民出版社，2024年，第37页。

(Dai Xin is an Associate Professor at the School of Marxism, Liaoning University of Technology, and a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Institute of Marxism, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.)

（代鑫系辽宁工业大学马克思主义学院副教授，中国社会科学院马克思主义研究院博士后。）

Online Editor: Huihui

网络编辑：慧慧

*Articles marked 【Original】 are first-published articles on the Marxist Research Network. Please indicate the source as the Marxist Research Network for reprinting.

*标注【原创】文章为马克思主义研究网首发文章，转载请注明来源为马克思主义研究网。