China To Relax Household Registration System

    By Grace Zhu

    BEIJING--China said Friday, in a key reform blueprint, that it would allow more rural residents to move into cities, part of an urbanization strategy that the country's new leaders have said will be a major driver of the economy.

    China will speed up the reform of the household registration, or "hukou," system and fully open up small cities to rural residents, according to a detailed reform plan released three days after the end of a crucial Communist Party meeting known as the third plenum.

    China's hukou system divides the population into rural and urban groups and prevents rural migrants to the cities, a major part of the labor force, from becoming registered urban residents. As migrants, they are barred from access to urban public services such as health care and education.

    According to the reform plan, China will gradually ease controls on household registration for rural people who move into mid-sized cities and set "reasonable" registration requirements for big cities. The population of China's largest cities will remain strictly controlled.

    The statement didn't provide further details on how and when hukou reform will proceed, or define which cities are considered large or medium-sized.

    Analysts say reform of the hukou system, which dates back to the Mao era, is essential for true urbanization to occur in China.

    China's Premier, Li Keqiang, has stressed the importance of urbanization as a future engine of growth in the world's second largest economy, since rural residents can earn higher incomes and spend more when they move into cities.

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