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As its glittering urban skylines attest, China has apparently quickly transformed itself from a place of stark poverty into a modern, urban, technologically savvy economic powerhouse. Scott Rozelle and Natalie Hell show in\xa0Invisible China, however, that the truth is much more complicated and perhaps deeply concerning.

China\u2019s growth has relied heavily on unskilled labor. Most of the workers who have fueled the country\u2019s rise come from rural villages and have never attended high school. The unskilled wage rate has been rising for more than a decade, inducing companies inside China to automate at an unprecedented rate and triggering an exodus of those seeking cheaper labor elsewhere.

Drawing on extensive surveys on the ground in China, Dr. Rozelle and Ms. Hell demonstrate that its labor force has one of the lowest levels of education of any country with a similarly large economy. The limited education of so many workers may leave them unable to find work in the formal workplace as China\u2019s economy changes and manufacturing jobs move elsewhere. In\xa0Invisible China, the authors speak not only to an urgent humanitarian concern but also to a potential economic crisis that could upend economies and foreign relations around the globe.

On\xa0November 2, the National Committee hosted a virtual program with\xa0Professor Scott Rozelle\xa0and commentator\xa0Dr. Qin Gao.