CRC/C/CHN/CO/3-4 consultations with children and civil society, including independent experts, in the monitoring and evaluation process of the NPCD and other policies and plans related to children. 10. The Committee regrets that notwithstanding its previous recommendations to establish a comprehensive plan of action for the implementation of the Convention (CRC/C/CHN/CO/2, para. 15), Hong Kong, China and Macao, China still lack a comprehensive policy and strategy on children in their respective jurisprudence to guide, in a holistic and integrated manner, all laws, policies, plans and programmes affecting children. 11. The Committee recommends that Hong Kong, China and Macao, China each adopt a comprehensive policy on children and, based on that policy, develop a strategy with clear objectives and coordinated plans of action for the implementation of the Convention, and allocate adequate human, technical and financial resources for their implementation, monitoring and evaluation. Allocation of resources 12. The Committee welcomes the efforts made by the State party to reduce the severe regional and rural-urban inequalities and disparities in mainland China. However, the Committee is seriously concerned about the persistence of such disparities, especially in rural and western areas of mainland China, and the inadequate resources allocated to local governments for the implementation of children’s rights. 13. The Committee is further concerned that: (a) Budget allocations from the central Government and funding for policies and plans concerning children’s rights, particularly the NPCD, are inadequate (gross domestic product allocation to health and education is 1.4 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively) and depend on provincial and lower-level resources, resulting in sharp inequities in public resource allocations; (b) Crucial areas, such as compulsory education, maternal and child health care, health infrastructure and quality assurance of services, as well as plans for expansion of welfare and other services to children living in poverty and disadvantaged families, including services for children with disabilities, continue to be underfunded; (c) In Hong Kong, China, resource allocations to education and social welfare remain inadequate and do not effectively target the most vulnerable groups, particularly children of ethnic or linguistic minorities, asylum-seeking children, children living in poverty and children with disabilities. 14. In light of its day of general discussion in 2007 on “Resources for the Rights of the Child – Responsibility of States” and with emphasis on articles 2, 3, 4 and 6 of the Convention, the Committee recommends that: (a) The State party take special measures to reduce regional and urbanrural disparities in mainland China and establish a budgeting process with a childrights perspective to adequately take into account child rights and areas of need and concern; (b) The State party effectively increase budgetary allocations from the central Government to provincial and local governments in mainland China, especially in rural areas and western provinces, for the implementation of policies, plans and structures concerning the implementation of children’s rights, particularly the NPCD and in the areas of health, education and other key social services. It should also establish mechanisms to monitor and evaluate the efficacy, adequacy and 3