SHANGHAI, May 9 (Xinhuanet)-- The drive to globalization will
speed up social evolution in China, especially after its entry
into the World Trade Organization (WTO), according to Lu Zhiqiang,
vice director of the Development Research Center of the State
Council.
   Lu told the PRC-Day Seminar on Thursday, part of the on-going
35th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian
Development Bank (ADB) in Shanghai, that China's economy would be
deeply involved in world economics which would be a catalyst for
social transformation.
   The reform and opening-up of China over the past 20 years had
caused great changes in society, and people's living styles, their
values as well as the concerns of society had changed drastically
from those of two decades ago, Lu said.
   He said he believed that the trend to globalization, along with
China's WTO accession, would encourage long-term economic
development, social modernization and improvements in people's
living conditions.
   But he also said that China would have less time to adjust to
new situations and would face greater challenges in solving social
problems, such as unemployment, the income gap and disputes
between employers and employees.
   China would not gloss over social conflicts and problems; on
the contrary, it would try all means within the framework of
development and reform, to remove barriers, Lu said.
   He said that China's bold move to develop the west, poverty-
relief programs plus continuous efforts to build a social security
system have all contributed to China's progress toward the goal of
common wealth.
   He proposed that the government push forward reforms on
resident registration and social security mechanisms, set up an
model system as soon as possible to investigate and supervise the
employment situation, institutionalize poverty-relief activities
in rural areas, and enforce the central government's fiscal
functions to serve public demand.    Enditem