2. Historical Continuities in Social Assistance in China, 1911–2011

Hammond discusses the development of social assistance programmes in China in the 100 years which have followed the Xinhai Revolution. The chapter draws on a range of primary research and secondary sources to construct a narrative of the emergence and changes in social assistance during a century of significant social, political and economic transformation. Hammond argues that social assistance is notable for two historical continuities. First, there are ideas regarding poverty, the poor and how to assist which continued and persisted across a tumultuous century. Second, it is noted that effectively implementing ambitious programmes has, for different reasons, been a continuous challenge for the Chinese state in the 100 years since the Xinhai Revolution.