Efforts for a Better Life: Relocation aims to enhance poverty alleviation, environmental protection

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Helping those in need is a priority in Chinese social network, particularly in remote rural areas. In Yingjiang county in southwest China's Yunnan province, efforts are being made to help people move from inhospitable places to better surroundings. Our reporter Zheng Yibing has the story.

A celebration for new homes. More than 1,000 locals from remote mountain areas are welcoming their new life closer to the town of Yingjiang. Cai Wu and his fellow villagers are among them.

CAI WU VILLAGER, YINGJIANG COUNTY, YUNNAN PROVINCE "From now on, my parents can get better health care, and my kids can go to school easily. Our home costs about 160,000 yuan. Most of the money is provided by the government."

Many of these people here have started cleaning up, and are ready for a new life here.

ZHENG YIBING YINGJIANG COUNTY, YUNNAN PROVINCE "Cai Wu and his fellow villagers used to live in a very different environment, a deep forest where natural resources were limited and natural disasters are frequent."

Some 70 kilometers away in the rugged mountains is their old habitat, a beautiful eco-system, though rather fragile. In the past, Cai Wu and nearly 200 other villagers, barely made a living here, working with natural resources. They cut down trees and mowed lemongrass, and even killed and sold rare birds. But life was not easy.

"Back then, we lived in shabby shacks with livestock. Usually, I only earned about 5,000 yuan per year."

Now with the help from the government and charity groups, changes are happening.

CAI WU VILLAGER, YINGJIANG COUNTY, YUNNAN PROVINCE "We have abandoned our old ways of living. We are growing more trees, protecting rare birds by organizing people to observe and not harm them, and we're helping protect the environment. I believe our lives will get better."

For Cai Wu and his family, they can either work as forest rangers, or seek jobs in town. Their annual income per person has increased from some 5,000 to 20,000 yuan, and a new life also means passing on hopes for the next generation. Zheng Yibing, CGTN, Yingjiang in Yunnan Province.