The government of the Communist Party of China (CPC) rolled out a national policy to contract out social and welfare services to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in 2013. This study explores how government contracting of services affects NGOs. We examine three areas: marketization, financial dependency, and autonomy. We find significant convergence of the effects of contracting on NGOs in China with NGOs’ experiences in liberal democratic countries, despite divergent political regimes. Found effects are explained by the combination of the authoritarian government of the CPC with the neoliberal governance structures introduced by contracting. Convergence with international experience despite divergent political regimes is attributed to the neoliberal essence of the policy of contracting of services.
Is the internet the game changer? Disabled people and digital work in ChinaABSTRACT:The marginalisation of disabled people in paid employment has been a longstanding issue. This article examines whether the recent proliferation of information and communication technologies (ICTs) can change the employment challenges for disabled people. It focuses on China, where digitalisation has happened almost simultaneously with industrialisation, and where a special disability employment trajectory is developing. Based on an exploratory study of the economic activities of Chinese disabled people, the article presents three types of digital work, in which physical labour, social relations and ICTs-related knowledge are commodified. These types of work are in general loosely organised, self-managed and unprotected. They have both empowering and debilitating effects. The article thus argues that the personal use of the Internet is just an entry point to disability employment, and it will be more effective if combined with policy interventions and broader structural changes.
The material cannot be used for any other purpose without further permission of the publisher and is for private use only. There may be differences between this version and the published version. You are advised to consult the publisher's version if you wish to cite from it.
In 2013 the authoritarian Chinese Communist Party adopted a nationwide policy to contract out welfare services to social organizations. This presented the Party/state with a conundrum: how best to foster service‐oriented social organizations whilst retaining control over politically sensitive groups. Using a Foucauldian framework of analysis, this article explores the rationalities and technologies of statecraft deployed to navigate this tension. It argues that contracting welfare services is a form of governmentality linked to economic efficiency, welfare provision and social stability, requiring subtle ways of governing society. In implementing this policy, the Party/state seeks to foster a service‐oriented civil society and stymie rights‐based and politically sensitive groups.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.