Ongoing changes in small rural village

The Shanhua Village takes on a new look after years of anti-poverty efforts [WeChat]

Editor's note:

The Shanhua Village in Yunnan Province has experienced a lot of changes in recent days. Previously, it was a remote mountain village, where locals had no choice but to live in poverty. But now, it is a promising village with impressive natural beauty and modern facilities.

What happened to the village? And what were the forces behind these changes? Li Peijun, a village-based cadre as well as the head of an anti-poverty program in the neighboring village, unveils the mysteries and details its changes.

Education: A Way to Anti-poverty

Under the supervision of the China Development Research Foundation (CDRF), a pilot project for mountain village kindergarten was carried out in Wuliangshan Town in Yunnan during late 2012. As part of the global "Everyone" Program, it covers various areas of early childhood development, such as education and health. Naturally, the poverty-stricken Shanhua Village with many left-behind children was chosen as one of the pilot areas to enhance preschool education.

Recently, a multi-purpose building has opened, where children can have class at daytime and local cadres can hold group meetings when available.

"It seemed impossible for some distant villages to shake off poverty by means of innovative education due to its limited teaching resources. However, some local talents flew back and committed themselves to addressing the issue as the kindergarten was built," said Li.

Li added that more kindergartens were scheduled to be established as China initiated the Nearby Enrollment Policy and Compulsory Education. In addition, the Chinese government has allocated more funds to subsidize compulsory education. "It will both help children and their guardians, most of who used to be migrant workers," believes Li.