Zheng's sentiments echo those of many other talented members of staff in China's welfare sector. Organizations in the field are becoming worried.

Bai Chengyu has been engaged in the field of poverty relief since 1988. He is currently working to establish a new public welfare organization, the China Rural Development Association. Speaking at a high-level forum held in Beijing on the theme 'multinationals and public welfare,' Bai said that many public welfare organizations are in urgent need of new talent. Few people are willing to commit themselves to a career in the non-governmental organization (NGO) sector. The legislative framework is in need of improvement and employment prospects are uncertain. Willing people do continue to come forward but high staff turnover is a problem. The resulting shortage of talent has become a pressing matter.

Huang Haoming is a director on the board of the China Association for NGO Cooperation. Huang spoke of five challenges facing China's public welfare organizations. They relate to weaknesses in:

long-term prospects

clarity of organizational aims

market awareness

resources-management systems

mechanisms to stimulate activity

China's welfare sector has boomed since the country introduced its policies of reform and opening-up. This was especially true in the late 1990s. Now there are more organizations. Their impact is greater and they are becoming involved in more and more fields.

Statistics from the Ministry of Civil Affairs show that by the end of 2002, China had as many as 130,000 organizations engaged in social work. The number includes welfare organizations operated by the public sector and 1,268 foundations engaged in the fields of poverty alleviation, education, environmental protection and in the provision of legal aid. The China Charity Federation confirms that the country now has over 1,000 organizations devoted to public welfare.

Some grass-roots public welfare organizations have been finding it difficult to keep up their momentum as they pursue the missions devolved to them by government. According to Dr. Deng Guosheng of the NGOs Research Institute of Qsinghua University, there is a tendency for a loss of impetus after they have seen the successful completion of a major headline project.

Minister Li Xueju of the Ministry of Civil Affairs said the Chinese government is stepping up its efforts to develop NGOs. It will encourage both domestic and foreign enterprises in their welfare efforts. They will be supported by government policy. He added that China will create a sound environment for those engaging in good works in the field of public welfare.

There are many voices offering suggestions on how to quicken the pace of welfare work in China.

Huang Haoming suggested that China's public welfare organizations should strengthen their cooperation with the relevant governmental departments and increase their interaction with interested enterprises. They should become more transparent in their policymaking, intensify staff training, make better use of information technology and step up their mutual cooperation.

A report from China's Non-profit Organization (NPO) Information Consultation Center proposed that NPOs including NGOs should assimilate successful experience from the developed countries and also from certain Asia-Pacific countries. They should bring in self-regulatory mechanisms and they also need to improve their exchanges and cooperation with the press and media.

(China.org.cn by Guo Xiaohong December 1, 2003)