Social protection for the near poor: Stratification and inequality in Russia and China

While the governments are widening public services and fighting for poverty reductions, the gap between the rich and the poor continues to rise. Furthermore, when the societies have learnt to value poverty reduction and help those in need, many people living in near poverty are left invisible. This paper is discussing on social stratification and social protection in Russia and China and particularly looks at struggles and rewards of low-income households in near poverty. The paper also includes information on social policies for the poor and provides its preliminary evaluation. The primary research question is what are the risks and opportunities for people living close to the poverty line. The sub-questions are: how critical is the current situation of near-poor people; and, what public services can be addressed by a government to prevent the people’s risks to fall under the poverty line. The study applies a content analysis and a descriptive analysis of secondary data. The paper outcome is going to be a theoretical and practical contribution to the field of poverty. The study uses the concept of ‘near poor’ applied in the USA, i.e. the households with a monthly income in the range of 100 percent-125 percent of the poverty line are cosnsidered as living in ‘near poverty’. A current analysis of ‘near poor’ in Russia and China is a step towards improving public services in the face of the changing situations of near poverty populations and overall poverty rates. Copyright © 2018 Hong Kong Sociological Association 20th Annual Conference.