History of demographic development of the Chinese province of Heilongjiang (1970–2020)

Abstract

The article presents the history of the demographic development of one of the Chinese northeastern provinces. Various processes of socio-political, trade, economic, foreign policy and spatial-regional transformations of the PRC in the second half of the XX century influenced the demographic processes of the Chinese border province of Heilongjiang. The purpose of the article is to consider the historical features, factors and reasons for the depopulation of the population of the Heilongjiang province bordering Russia. As a result of studying the natural-climatic, institutional-political and modernization-industrial factors of the historical evolution of Heilongjiang Province, it has been established that the current decline and aging of the population, the decline in the birth rate, the migration of labor resources from the province to other regions of China is a consequence of the reduction of state-owned enterprises, the implementation of a strategy of regional uneven development in 19781999, low investment attractiveness, long-term innovation and technological adaptation of Heilongjiang Province to the rapid pace of Chinas economic development. In the early 1990-ies, when the Soviet Union collapsed and the economy of a neighboring state was in difficult conditions, proximity to Russia did not bring economic growth to Heilongjiang. On the contrary, it was the heavy industry that provided the leading positions for Northeast China in the middle of the XX century that became an obstacle to the economic development of Heilongjiang. In the 1990-ies the reform of state-owned enterprises led to the dismissal of workers who, having lost their jobs, left Heilongjiang province. The decline in the growth rate of the old industrial base in the Northeast of the PRC has had an impact on the fact that Heilongjiang Province has gradually turned from the territory of the main influx of population (19501960-ies) into the territory of the largest outflow of population (2010-ies to the present).

Keywords

• general history
• historical demographics
• heilongjiang province
• strategic territory
• population depopulation
• outflow of labor resources
• state enterprises