In harsh, remote Ningxia, cooperation makes a difference

Significant progress

Xian Hui, the head of the local government in the Ningxia Hui autonomous region, said the region made significant progress in poverty reduction last year, lifting 103,000 people out of poverty. In 2020, the region's remaining 18,800 people will rise, according to Xinhua News Agency.

The region will put long-term mechanisms in place to prevent people from returning to poverty and will not leave any family or person behind on the path, she said.

Emphasizing the country's poverty alleviation campaign, President Xi Jinping conducted inspection tours of many impoverished areas. Yangling village in Jingyuan county is one of the places he visited.

"On July 18, 2016, President Xi came to my home. He sat with us on our kang bed," Ma Kejun, a Yangling resident, recalled.

A kang bed is a hollow platform made of brick that is used both as a bed and a dining area. Hot coals beneath keep it warm day and night during harsh winters. It is a common structure in homes in the remote villages of northern China.

"Xi wanted to know about issues in the village, such as the drinking water, roads, housing and education," Ma said. "The president took my hand and asked my age. When I said 59, he replied, 'You are younger than me, so you are my younger brother,'" Ma recalled with a smile.

Ma's home was filled with important local people－a cattle breeder, village and county heads and representatives of the local Chinese Communist Party－who had been invited to speak with Xi.

Xi urged Party members to be proactive in tackling poverty. Following that advice, the local authorities created a plan to alleviate poverty in Jingyuan county by developing parks and tourism related to the forests.

Rising forest cover

After decades of ecological rehabilitation, coupled with grazing bans, Guyuan, the city that administers Jingyuan county, now boasts a total forested area of 281,333 hectares. It has a 73 percent coverage rate for forest and grass.

In 2000, China established the Liupanshan Tourism Poverty Alleviation Experimental Area, the first of its kind in the country. Since then, remarkable progress has been made in the ecosystem and in the tourism sector with the support of the central and local governments.

Yejia village, with 137 households and around 1,400 people, is a must-see spot for tourists visiting Liupanshan National Forest Park. Ten years ago, one-third of residents in the village did not have enough to eat. Now, with the rapid development of tourism, the village has 78 farmstays, with the most successful one earning a net profit of more than 500,000 yuan last year.

"At present, we are integrating the natural resources and cultural resources of the Liupan Mountain area to establish a 5A scenic spot that will help more poor people in the area get out of poverty," said Wang Zhou, chairman of Ningxia Liupanshan Tourism Group.

Tourist attractions or scenic areas rated 5A are the most important and best-maintained travel destinations in China.

Yangling village is located in the poverty alleviation experimental area. Ma Kejun, who had met President Xi, sold all his cattle to a breeding company－15,500 yuan for a big cow－because his cowshed was too smelly for tourists. He is paid at least 960 yuan per cow annually.

He rebuilt his cowshed into a teahouse, which is now a popular place for tourists. A booming tourism industry is helping Ma and other people in Yangling village shake off poverty and live a better life.

"I now earn more money thanks to an increasing influx of tourists into this scenic experimental area," Ma said with a big smile.