Poverty Alleviation in Lushi County

by Wang Yuncong

Lushi County in Sanmenxia City was one of the four poorest counties in central Chinas Henan Province. The county is located in a mountainous area with over 4，000 hills and 2，400 rivers and streams. In the past， many poverty-stricken households were scattered across this area.

In early 2016， the poor population in Lushi County was 63，134 in 19，645 households， and the poverty rate was as high as 18.9 percent. The harsh natural environment and poor living conditions， as well as difficulty in accessing clean water， convenient transport， decent schooling， medical treatment and employment， have been the root causes of poverty for many households in the mountainous county. To eliminate the causes of poverty， they must move out of the mountains.

Rows of six-story buildings are distributed neatly in Xingxianli Community， a resettlement site for poverty alleviation in Hengjing Town of Lushi County. They are the new homes for 11，212 people from 2，749 poor families who had lived in deep mountains for generations. They moved into the community for a new life that has helped them get rid of poverty.

Xingxianli Community， located in Yingzi Village， Hengjing Town， is the main resettlement area of Lushi County. As the largest resettlement community in Henan Province， it covers an area of more than 30 hectares， and consists of a total of 83 six-story buildings.

Without arrangements for employment， it would be difficult for the relocated poor people to subsist. In order to prevent the relocated households from “dwelling in new houses while living a hard life，” Lushi County combines resettlement with arrangements for employment by taking advantage of various resources from both the resettlement area and the area where the relocated residents used to live.

More than 70 industrial bases have been built at 55 resettlement sites in Lushi County， which benefited more than 10，000 people. In addition， more than 20 poverty alleviation workshops were built， providing more than 6，000 jobs， and eight photovoltaic power stations were constructed to ensure 502 relocated households have stable incomes. All of those measures have helped achieve full employment of laborers from relocated households.

At the same time， Lushi County integrated the resettlement of poverty-stricken households with the development of such special industries as fungi， medicinal herb and fruit cultivation. Some leading enterprises have taken the initiative to offer the locals shares， dividends， jobs and business opportunities， which are strong and continuous support for life after resettlement. Through effective policy arrangements in industrial development， employment and entrepreneurship， the poor have not only moved into new houses， but have also led better lives. Poverty alleviation and future development after resettlement have become a reality， and the “Lushi mode” of deep integration of resettlement and industrial arrangement was established.

Around China， there are numerous outstanding examples of poverty alleviation like Lushi County. It is estimated that China reduced the number of poor people by more than 10 million and lifted about 340 counties out of poverty in 2019. The task of poverty alleviation through resettlement is basically complete. President Xi Jinping pointed out that without a moderately prosperous life for poor people， a moderately prosperous society in all respects cannot be built. China is expected to completely eliminate poverty this year， and a moderately prosperous society in all respects is within reach.