Filling the Void

by Li Gang

Fengdu County in south- western Chinas Chongqing Municipality is situated at the heart of the Three Gorges Reservoir area. It is known as a tourist destination of historical and cultural significance along the Yangtze River， but its mountainous and sparse land has hindered the countys development. In 2002， Fengdu became a key national-level county for poverty alleviation and development. Although it had been removed from the list of poverty-stricken counties by the end of 2017， there are still 28 villages in extreme poverty， which has remained a difficult obstacle to overcome.

A “Hollowed Village”

Qingtian is a severely impoverished village 80 kilometers north of the county seat of Fengdu. According to Liu Dingfu， secretary of the villages Communist Party of China （CPC） branch， Qingtian has a registered population of more than 1，200 people， but fewer than 200 permanent residents aged between 18 and 50 remain in the village. The rest are the elderly and children.

Even middle-aged women were reluctant to stay， knowing that they could earn much more money by working elsewhere. In most circumstances， they are forced to stay to take care of sick seniors.

Currently， Qingtian has 248 registered impoverished people from 61 households. Thanks to unremitting efforts since 2014， a total of 237 people from 56 households in the village have been lifted from poverty. With the rapid progress of urbanization in China， “hollowed villages” in rural areas like Qingtian are becoming increasingly common. Fewer people live in rural areas， fewer young and middle-aged workers stay behind and many houses sit vacant. Some rural villages are almost entirely populated with the old， weak and disabled.

Most aged villagers earn some income by picking up odd jobs. The oldest employed in weeding a tea garden is 75， and the youngest is 54. Their sons， daughters and grandchildren all work outside the county and return only once a year.“Almost everyone is like this， with few exceptions.”

To achieve the key goal of eradicating poverty by 2020， targeted poverty alleviation for such “hollowed villages” is vitally important in the critical period of the final stage of the poverty alleviation drive. But without enough young laborers， who will take the lead in helping the poor？ As officials across the country continue exploring， the “Qingtian Village Model” has provided solid ideas to address the problem.

Qingtian Village Model

The declining population left unused houses throughout the village. Some houses have been renovated and developed by the village committee after consultation with villagers. Others are dilapidated and need to be renovated and reconstructed. Recently， an old building was completely renovated into a workshop for villagers to hold meetings， have entertainment and watch operas. The originally messy village has taken on a whole new look.