With China recently mapping out its plans to revitalize rural areas, three county leaders are sharing their plans based on their own unique situations. RORY COEN has more details from today's State Council press conference in Beijing.
Located in the Zhejiang province in the east, Guizhou in the southwest and Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region in northwest China, the three counties have distinct natural environments, and are at different stages of development.
But one thing they have in common is their ambition to lure their villagers back home from the country's big cities. It's all part of China's rural vitalization vision, which addresses issues related to agriculture, rural areas and rural people. The well-developed Deqing county in Zhejiang province is setting the par in this regard. The coastal county -- where the picturesque Mogan Mountain is located -- has been working hard to drive its tourism industry. CGTN asked the three county committee secretaries what they were doing to entice their villagers back.
XIANG LEMIN, SECRETARY CPC COUNTY COMMITTEE DEQING COUNTY, ZHEJIANG PROVINCE "Rural residents in my county are not really interested in relocating to the cities. Instead, urban dwellers, including the well-educated want to move to the countryside. One reason for that is diversification as we develop tourism, leisure agriculture and e-commerce. We have also provided residents with good public services, including advanced transportation. And finally, we have taken full advantage of our unique natural environment."
But for Meitan, a typical inland county located in south-western China, how it retains its talent is a totally different story through tea planting.
WEI ZAIPING, SECRETARY CPC COUNTY COMMITTEE MEITAN COUNTY, GUIZHOU PROVINCE "Over the last decade, we have made tea-planting our pillar industry, developing 400 square kilometres of tea fields. Last year alone, the value of our tea output was 4.2 billion yuan. We have also set up a big tea market and an annual tea expo."
Villagers all over the country flock to the cities and seldom return. That's certainly the reality for counties like Yongning in Ningxa. But there is a nationwide policy now in place to help them get off the ground.
QIAN KEXIAO, SECRETARY CPC COUNTY COMMITTEE YONGNING COUNTY, NINGXIA "We have been cooperating with the southeastern province of Fujian for 20 years. Located in the northwestern China, our county faces harsh living conditions, such as water shortages. Fujian has helped us in many areas, including financing, technology and human resources. Many enterpreneurs in Fujian have come to Ningxia to set up companies."
For the 15th year in a row, China's No. 1 Central Document has targeted agriculture, farming and rural areas. Following China's vision for rural vitalization, many believe that now is the time for local governments to start putting their plans into practice. RORY COEN, CGTN.