Xinhua Headlines: The global significance of China's poverty alleviation

* Over the past decades, China has lifted 800 million people out of poverty, achieving the poverty reduction goals of the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development a full decade ahead of schedule.

* This historic achievement resolved the absolute poverty problem China had faced for millennia, and gives hope and inspiration for other countries in their fight against poverty.

* "If China can make it, other developing countries can make it as well," Xi told the world.

by Xinhua writer Gao Wencheng

BEIJING, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- "Poverty alleviation has always been a priority and a major task I am determined to deliver," Chinese President Xi Jinping reflected on his years of effort on poverty reduction when attending the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro last month.

Speaking to world leaders at the G20 gathering, Xi likened the fight against poverty to a bird's struggle to fly, saying, "A weaker bird can start early and fly high." This metaphor resonated with many developing countries.

Over the past decades, China has lifted 800 million people out of poverty, achieving the poverty reduction goals of the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development a full decade ahead of schedule. This historic achievement resolved the absolute poverty problem China had faced for millennia, and gives hope and inspiration for other countries in their fight against poverty.

PEOPLE-CENTERED APPROACH

To end poverty, the "last mile"-- reaching the most disadvantaged individuals in remote regions, often burdened by disabilities, illness, or lack of education -- is the most challenging. As poverty rates decline and extreme poverty comes to the fore, the utility of the same-level interventions would diminish, thus many governments would reduce funding.

Yet, in the "last mile" of China's anti-poverty fight, China has sustained and even increased its poverty alleviation funding, ensuring that no region or individual was left behind, said Cai Fang, chief expert of the National Think Tank under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Over an eight-year period starting in 2012, China lifted an average of over 10 million people out of poverty annually -- equivalent to the population of a medium-sized country. This achievement equates to one person escaping poverty every three seconds.

"Only by embracing a people-centered development philosophy as the fundamental epistemology can such unwavering poverty alleviation efforts be made," Cai said.

A government's approach to poverty is widely viewed as a reflection of its priorities and relationship with its people. As Polish scholar Jan Rowinski once observed, China's poverty alleviation efforts highlight a governance model deeply rooted in accountability, execution, and the belief that the well-being of its people is paramount.

PERSISTENT EFFORTS

After becoming China's top leader, Xi launched a historic nationwide campaign against extreme poverty. Over the next eight years, until he declared China's "complete victory" in its fight against poverty in 2021, Xi visited all 14 contiguous areas of extreme poverty across the country and over 20 poor villages, and sat in the homes of impoverished households to learn about their difficulties, and listen to their needs. Peruvian President Dina Boluarte hailed Xi's leadership as a model for overcoming extreme poverty and building national strength.

China, under Xi's leadership, has consistently made poverty eradication a key priority in national governance. This unwavering commitment, described by Xi as the "endurance, perseverance, and striving spirit that enables water drops to penetrate rocks over time and turns blueprints into reality," has ensured both policy continuity and long-term success.

China's achievement highlights "the importance of political commitment at all levels of government and policy stability to improve the conditions of the poorest and most vulnerable," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in his congratulations to Xi as China declared victory over extreme poverty in 2021.

PROGRESS-DRIVEN METHODS

In 2013, during a visit to Shibadong Village in Hunan Province, Xi put forward the concept of "targeted poverty alleviation." This approach tailored solutions to the specific situation regarding each region, household, and individual, so as to ensure precise and effective measures.

Eleven years later, just a month ago, the village was recognized as one of the UN World Tourism Organization's "Best Tourism Villages," marking its remarkable transformation from an isolated village into a thriving, vibrant community.

The success of China's strategy has been highly regarded by leaders of many developing countries. For example, in 2018, Bounnhang Vorachith, then general secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party Central Committee and president of Laos, visited Shibadong to learn about its poverty-reduction efforts. Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev wrote the foreword for the Uzbek edition of Xi's book "Up and Out of Poverty," highlighting "China's practical experience in poverty alleviation."

In addition, diplomats from 11 countries visited Huamao Village, southwest China's Guizhou Province, to learn about its innovative approach to integrating agriculture and tourism.

China channeled talent, funds, and technology into underdeveloped regions, fostering industrial growth and infrastructure upgrades tailored to local conditions. This progress-driven approach partially explains why Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva hailed China as an impressive development model.

PROSPERITY FOR ALL

The Chinese TV drama "Minning Town" has captivated audiences across Africa and other parts of the Global South. Set in northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region from the 1990s to the present day, the production shows how villagers from Xihaigu, one of China's most uninhabitable areas, have triumphed over destitution with assistance from the coastal province of Fujian.

Xihaigu was once called "the most unfit place for human settlement" by UN experts due to drought and ecological fragility. In 1997, Xi, then deputy secretary of the Communist Party of China Fujian Provincial Committee, visited Xihaigu as part of a "pairing-up" poverty alleviation initiative between Fujian and Ningxia. Distressed by the impoverished living conditions of the local people, he pushed for a relocation project, moving communities from Xihaigu to a more fertile area along the Yellow River. The new settlement is called "Minning Village."

Today, Minning Village has grown into Minning Town, with residents' per capita income increasing about 20-fold in two decades.

Across the country, China's East-West Pairing-up Program transfers resources, expertise, and funding from developed eastern regions to less developed western areas, narrowing regional disparities. Experts believe China's poverty alleviation, rooted in the goal of common prosperity, is a rational approach to economic development.

PARTNERSHIPS FOR DEVELOPMENT

"If China can make it, other developing countries can make it as well," Xi told the world, adding that "China is ready to take steps together with all parties to build a just world of common development, leave poverty in the past, and turn our vision into reality."

While eradicating its own poverty, China has championed South-South cooperation. China has extended development aid to over 160 countries, collaborated with more than 150 countries through the Belt and Road Initiative, and worked with over 100 countries and international organizations, including the United Nations, on projects under the Global Development Initiative (GDI). Through the GDI, nearly 20 billion U.S. dollars in development funds have been mobilized, supporting the launch of over 1,100 projects.

China has also trained over 400,000 professionals from more than 180 countries. For example, Endalkachew Sime, former state minister of Ethiopia, is now pursuing a PhD at Peking University, seeking to learn from China's experience and apply similar development strategies in Africa.

More broadly, China's poverty alleviation story showcases a path distinct from Western colonial or capitalist models. It underscores a vision of modernization rooted in independence, cooperation, and shared prosperity.

"I think that this Chinese experience can offer some important lessons to the Global South," said Melissa Cambuhy, a researcher at the Lula Institute in Sao Paulo. "The Global South countries can look up to the Chinese experience and realize that there are a lot of other ways for development in the world."

(Video editors: Hong Yan, Li Qin, Liu Xiaorui, Zhang Qiru)■