BEIJING, Dec. 9 (Xinhuanet) -- China is writing a strategy to prevent potential population problems, as the first 50 years of the new century will be crucial for its population growth, senior official Yu Xuejun said.

    According to Thursday's China Daily, Yu noted that the challenges China will face include a lack of educated and skilled workers, a growing number of migrants and a disproportionate sex ratio at birth.

    The challenges will all add to the risk of social and economic problems, said Yu, who is director of the Department of Policy andLegislation of National Population and Family Planning Commission.

    "All these problems will pose severe challenges to the nation's population and family planning," Yu acknowledged.

    In March, Yu's commission organized around 300 scholars, experts and government officials to conduct a study on population strategy.

    Based on basic data about population size and structure, the researchers will work out a medium-and-long-term blue-print for the country's population development and set forth proposals for policy makers.

    "The research is well under way and the preliminary outcome is being evaluated," Yu said. The study also looks at employment, population distribution and people's health.

    "Priority will be given to controlling population growth and stabilizing low fertility since overpopulation remains a serious problem," Yu said.

    Moreover, he said, "We will take into account improving education, structure and distribution of the population.".

    China carried out its family planning policy in the 1970s, whenpoverty and dramatic population growth risked eating up its limited resources.

    Thanks to the policy, the country has maintained a rational population growth rate in line with its economic and social development. But few policies are perfect and other problems have emerged from family planning, including the aging population and gender imbalance resulting from son preference.

    The fifth census in 2000 found the number of people above age 65 reach 88.11 million in the country, which is 6.96 percent of the total population.

    The tradition of son preference has widened the disproportion of sex ratio. According to official statistics, there are 117 boysborn to every 100 girls on the Chinese mainland.

    The results could be social insecurities and marriage pressures.But Yu noted that from the perspective of development, family planning will be China long-standing basic policy in view of the nation's national conditions.

    He acknowledged that "China, as the most populous nation on earth, will not abandon the policy because of the negative effectsit may bring about."

    The Chinese government is still working on some new, substantial measures to minimize the negative effects, said Yu.

    While formulating the population strategy, the nation is endeavoring to promote the family planning policy by compensating one-child or two-girl families in rural areas.

    According to the system, any couple living in the countryside with one child or two girls is entitled to an annual 1,200-yuan (US$145) subsidy once they are over 60 years old. Enditem