Initiatives to raise living standards in China's Panjin

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"Beautiful Countryside" is one of the central themes focused on raising living standards in rural China. Accomplishing the goal will require an upgrade of energy consumption, as well as a new model of improving the rural economy.

For example, the government of Panshan County in Panjin, northeast China's Liaoning Province, has been promoting a switch to cleaner energy.

Last year, natural gas became available in every single household of the county. Villagers say the air is improved.

CGTN Photo

“Before, we were burning coal or straw for heating, and there was heavy smoke everywhere in the village. Now those days are gone, and cooking has become never so easy. You just turn it on whenever you want,” said Hong Ben from Xincun Village.

Currently, like 90 percent of the households in the county, Hong’s house is equipped with a water heater that can heat up the floor within 10 minutes.

However, as efficient and environmentally friendly as it is, the idea of using a water heater was hard to sell at first among villagers.

CGTN Photo

The chief of the village, Chen Yun, told CGTN that initially many villagers rejected the idea because it would cost them 1,000 yuan more per year than burning coal.

So, the government decided to subsidize each household by lowering the price to 3 yuan per cubic meter, which saves them about a third of the cost.

There are 305 villages in Panjin. Last year, the city government decided to develop a new program that combines agriculture with tourism by making these little villages into tourist destinations.

CGTN Photo

That, in turn, has also increased the income of local villagers. Several households are now supplementing their income by turning their homes into guest houses for tourists who want an authentic village experience.

“We used to run a restaurant in town, but we decided to give that up and operate a guest house instead so we wouldn’t have to pay for labor and rent. Also, the government helped us refurbish the rooms for free, and now we make about 40,000 yuan a year more than before,” said Wang Xueli, Hong Ben’s wife.

CGTN Photo

Last year, some 800,000 people visited villages in Panjin County. This year the city government is aiming even higher.

Under the slogan “Beautiful Countryside,” it plans to encourage more households like Hong’s to open guest houses, making village tourism another growth point for the rural economy.

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