China winning the toughest of tough battles against poverty

BEIJING - China has made remarkable progress in its poverty alleviation work during the past five years, winning the toughest of the tough battles.

“The number of people living below the poverty line in China has been reduced by an average of 13 million each year since 2012,” Liu Yongfu, director of the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development, said at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office Tuesday. The country lifted 6.39 million people out of poverty annually in the last 15 years of the 20th century, after launching large-scale poverty relief programs in 1986. During the first decade of this century, the population living below the poverty line decreased by an annual average of 6.73 million. Priorities such as targeted poverty alleviation have also gained ground. But despite progress, major difficulties still face people living in deep poverty. Chinese President Xi Jinping called for enhanced and solid efforts to win the battle against poverty at a meeting held in Beijing Monday to honor people who have made great contributions to poverty relief. Although remarkable progress has been made since the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee made a solemn promise to lift all rural people out of poverty by 2020, Xi said, all-out efforts should be made toward poverty relief, as it is the toughest of all battles. Xi himself has completed more than 30 field tours on poverty alleviation during past five years and hosted five inter-provincial meetings at locations including Fuping County in north China’s Hebei Province. At remote villages in the county, locals experienced the changes following a visit by Xi Jinping in December 2012, shortly after he was elected general secretary of the CPC Central Committee. “The general secretary said during his tour to our village that he would like us to get rid of poverty and become better off as soon as possible. Today, I want to let him know that we’ve made it,” said Gu Chenghu, a villager from Gujiatai village in Fuping County, Hebei Province. When Xi visited Gujiatai village five years ago, Gu had nothing but a bunch of corn in his shabby yard. He felt helpless to take care of his sick wife and son. In Luotuowan village, another village in Fuping County, 428 out of 608 villagers were living in poverty when Xi visited there in 2012. In 2013, nearly half of the residents of Fuping County were living in poverty. (Xinhua.com)