society

2018 Poverty Funding Released in Full

Chinas Ministry of Finance（MOF） said on July 30 that it had injected RMB 140 billion（about US $20.5 billion） into an allowance scheme to help needy families and individuals. China has met its allocation target for this year ahead of schedule， according to the ministry.

The MOF and the Ministry of Civil Affairs urged local authorities to ensure timely allocation and strengthened management of the allowances， which will fund aid programs including the basic living allowance and assistance for homeless people and orphans， according to an official with the MOF.

Another RMB 26.6 billion has been allocated to help renovate dilapidated homes for some 1.9 million impoverished families， according to the ministry. Families living in areas affected by extreme poverty will receive higher subsidies to improve their living conditions.

China Wins Its First WISE Award

Chinas One Village One Preschool （OVOP） is among six projects that won the 2018 WISE Awards for their innovative solutions to challenges in education and their positive social impact. It is the first time China has received the honor.

Launched by the China Development Research Foundation（CDRF）， OVOP aims at provid- ing accessible early childhood development services to remote， mountainous， and impoverished villages through Village Early Education Centers. These centers provide low-cost preschool services for children living in poverty or left-behind children in villages. The program has so far reached 170，000 children in 21 poverty-stricken counties in nine provinces， including Xijiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Qatar Foundation established the World Innovation Summit for Education （WISE） in 2009. Through the biennial summit and a range of programs， WISE is promoting innovation and building the future of education through collaboration.

Grassland Environment Shows Improvement

China has made big headways in grassland conservation since 2012. Last year the vegetation cover in its prairies reached 55.3 percent， up 4.3 percent over 2011， and natural rangelands added up to 392.8 million hectares， accounting for 12 percent of the global total and being the largest in the world.

According to Liu Jiawen， an official with National Forestry and Grassland Administration， over the past years China has intensified efforts to better use its pastures and improve pastoral land condition， and increased awards and subsidies for ecological conservation. As a result， the average overload rate of natural grasslands fell by 18.7 percentage points from 2010 to 11.3 percent last year.

Since 2011， investment from the central budget in grassland conservation projects has exceeded RMB 40 billion. Herders in 13 provinces and autonomous regions receive financial awards and subsidies for suspending grazing in certain areas and keeping the size of their herds within the carrying capacity of local grasslands. These measures have ignited their enthusiasm to protect the local environment， and boosted their incomes even when the number of their livestock has decreased.

China Trains Young Scientists for Sri Lanka

This fall， 15 Sri Lankan students will study for masters or doctors degrees in climatology and oceanology at University of Chinese Academy of Sciences and South China Sea Institute of Oceanology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences （CAS）.

In response to Sri Lankas demand for young scientists with masters degrees and above， South China Sea Institute of Oceanology launched a program in 2016 for applicants from the country to study climatology and oceanology at different institutes under the CAS. The first batch of students will graduate next year. They are expected to contribute to their countrys capacity for monitoring the maritime environment， scientific and technological research， and climate adaptation.

According to Gamini Senanayake， vice chancellor of the University of Ruhuna， the opportunity for Sri Lankan students to receive higher education on oceanology is critical for the development of the country， which depends on the ocean for subsistence. He said that for now his country faces a dire shortage of talent in this field.