While increasing income inequality in China has been commented on and studied extensively,
relatively little analysis is available on inequality in other dimensions of human development. Using
data from different sources, this paper presents some basic facts on the evolution of spatial inequalities
in education and healthcare in China over the long run. In the era of economic reforms, as the
foundations of education and healthcare provision have changed, so has the distribution of illiteracy
and infant mortality. Across provinces and within provinces, between rural and urban areas and within
rural and urban areas, social inequalities have increased substantially since the reforms began.