Lu Dan (Bouyei ethnic group)
Dressed in traditional Bouyei clothes, Lu Dan is the villagers’ committee chief of Zhifu Village in Anshun, Guizhou.
Lu aspires for more people to savor the fruits of her village’s labor, and specifically the specialty fruit of her hometown: the honey sugar plum.
Zhifu, a longstanding settlement of the Bouyei ethnic group, has steadily paved the way to a better life by tapping into the most prevalent characteristics of its local heritage. The honey sugar plum, a cherished local specialty, has been dubbed the “Hermès among plums” by Chinese netizens, owing to its exceptional quality and economic significance.
In recent years, the village has developed an industry around the fruit. Through the continuous improvement of growing techniques, the yield of the plums has increased year by year, with quality, and in turn sales, also continuing to improve.
In 2023, Zhifu established the Prosperity Through Plums brand, dedicated to local plum sugar products. This initiative involves fortifying both online
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and offline sales channels, resulting in substantial operational profits that not only improve the livelihoods of fruit farmers but also significantly bolster the village’s collective economy.
Lu, in her capacity as an NPC deputy, focuses on the development of rural industries. “I have brought with me suggestions on the industry’s most urgent needs in terms of infrastructure, hoping to attract more attention to the industrial development of my hometown and get more people to understand and care about the overall situation of rural industrial development,” she told Beijing Review.
Lu’s wish is that through joint efforts, this “sweet business” can continue to develop.
Kong Feifei (Xibe ethnic group)
“You are welcome to visit Qapqal Town!” Kong Feifei, deputy mayor of Qapqal Town in Qapqal Xibe Autonomous County, Xinjiang, said, warmly extending an invitation to the media outside the Great Hall of the People on March 5.
Kong has been deeply involved in the county’s community work since graduating from university in 2008. Last year, she was elected as a deputy to the NPC.
“Only by reaching out to communities both physically and mentally can one truly understand the needs of the public,” Kong told Beijing Review. Years of experience have given her a deeper understanding of the expectations related to rural revitalization, enabling her to serve and advocate for the public in a more practical manner.
During last year’s Two Sessions, Kong advocated for natural gas heating in rural areas during the winter and put forth related suggestions. She expressed her gratitude for the policy support received from the central and regional governments, highlighting the launch of a natural gas pipeline project by the local government for the benefit of the people.
Presently, the pipeline has been extended to the doorsteps of villagers. Kong expressed optimism, saying, “We expect to achieve full gasification by October. At that point, people will only need to turn a valve to enjoy the convenience of heating and bathing, truly experiencing the beautiful life brought by clean(er) energy.”
Given natural gas is a cleaner-burning fuel than other traditional sources of heating such as coal or wood, the use of natural gas can contribute to reducing air pollution and improving air quality in rural communities.
This year, Kong tabled five proposals, including one to support the development of the Qapqal Newspaper, a county-level Xibe-language newspaper. Additionally, she proposed the establishment of a Qapqal Xibe Autonomous County Embroidery Industrial Park.
“Xibe embroidery is one of the treasures of our diverse ethnic cultures and was even included in the third batch of national intangible cultural heritage lists in 2011,” she said.
Kong hopes to integrate existing resources to create a cultural exchange and research and development center for embroidery that combines the efforts of enterprises, universities and research institutions. “This will not only allow more people to appreciate the unique charm of Xibe embroidery craftsmanship, but will also attract more people to participate in the inheritance and protection of traditional ethnic handicrafts,” she concluded.