Driving Poverty Alleviation for 100,000 People Coming Down From Mountains

Rushing along high mountains with steep cliffs … the torrential Nujiang River runs ahead

Welcome to the Nujiang Lisu Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan. In its lush and beautiful 14.7 thousand square-meter land, poverty continues to plague the 550,000 people of the 22 nationalities.

As the final exam of poverty alleviation in Year 2020 comes in less than 90 days, senior prefecture leader took their final step by relocating people to a far better place.

Up to now, one fifth of the prefecture’s total population exceeding 100,000 people have moved to new homes away from the mountains to restart their life.

Moving down the mountain - 100,000 poor people now live in new houses

Liu Zongkui and Huang Bangfei, members of the poverty alleviation team of the Lushui Power Supply Bureau, Yunnan Power Supply Co. Ltd in Tuotuo Village, Luobenzhuo Bai Ethnic Group Town, together with “Little Hertz”, visited the former site where Meichudeng Group of Tuotuo Village used to be.

They set off from the village committee office at the base of the mountain by car before walking 20 minutes to their final destination.

▲ Huang Bangfei visits the villagers and persuades them to move (Photo by Huang Bangfei)

Before villagers moved, their wooden houses were scattered here and there on the slope of the mountainside, using bamboo skins or wooden boards as their roofs. As time progressed, they adorned the tops of their homes with used asbestos sheets.

▲ Old houses on the mountainside

In an effort to persuade villagers to move into new houses to start better lives, members of the poverty alleviation team paid several visits to the villagers’ homes.

▲ Villagers herd their cattle while foraging for Chinese chestnuts

Villagers simple could not continue live in their present conditions and expect to improve their standard of living. More than 98% of Nujiang Prefecture is mountainous terrain with steep and 70% of the arable areas are those with slopes of more than 25 degrees. To live, villagers have had to plant corn and other crops in the few relatively flat areas and pick up some Chinese chestnuts and mushrooms to fill out their meager daily rations.

▲ The slope where Meichudeng Group lives

According to Liu Zongkui of the poverty alleviation team, the power lines that can be seen in this picture are temporarily unused because villagers have moved down the mountain but are planning to develop breeding industry there in which the power lines will be recovered to help them with a stable power source.

Keeping employment stable, people work near home and live better lives

Villagers have moved down from the mountainsides to raise their families and build a brighter future as senior leaders from Nujiang Prefecture provide new methods of making living for the 100,000 resident by building poverty-alleviating factories, developing industries and encouraging them to move out for work.

▲ In the relocation site of impoverished residents in Jiangxi, Fugong County is settling 8,000 families from the mountains.  

▲ As darkness falls, basketball courts are lightened as the community holds a friendly game. Other places throughout Nujiang Prefecture also help villagers to adapt to the city life through different cultural activities and sports.

Po Lengduo and Qia Bicai are a couple who, last May, just moved in from Lamujia Village. The couple tidied the 120-square-meter house in order. Beside a television, rice cooker, water heater, tables and chairs that were already in the house when they moved in, they bought a new washing machine, a disinfection cabinet and a sofa set.

▲ Qia Bicai’s kitchen

The “little Hertz” sensed that all appliances in her kitchen are electromagnetized, as because there is no natural gas in Fugong County, people have to use induction cookers.

According to Qia Bicai, “all relocated families are provided with 15 kWh of electricity every month. Besides, the electricity fee is inexpensive. I myself get used to using washing machine and disinfection cabinet every day”.

▲ The power distribution room at the Jiangxi relocation site

What is special at this site is the bi-loop 10 kV power supply system, namely the other loop will continue to supply power once there are faults in one of them, so people need not to worry about power interruption. To upgrade the low voltage and to ensure permanent power supply for Nujiang Prefecture, China Southern Power Grid invested more than RMB 18 million.

Less than 100 meters away from home of Po Lengduo and Qia Bicai stands the factory where the couple work, namely, the East-West Cooperation Baseball Sewing Workshop where they earn RMB 2.5 for each baseball.

▲ A baseball made by Qia Bicai and her workmates will be transported to Guangdong and then packed for exported. Photo by Chen Zhuliang

The couple can finish 50 baseballs in one day, which comes to RMB 3,000 a month … and when you add in the government subsidies, their annual income exceeds RMB 40,000. When it comes to the new life after moving, Po Lengduo nods cheerfully and has great hope for the future.

Using High-Qquality Electricity, Villagers are Moving Towards a Brighter Future

Restricted by the geographical conditions, there are no highways, no railways, no waterways, and no transportation channels in Nujiang Prefecture, but electricity is supplied to each and every village and house.

▲ On Sep. 17, 2012, the Power Supply Project for People Without Electricity in Dulong River Town was placed into operation. Gelainasong, the then 84-year-old lady of the Derung Ethnic Group (with facial tattoo) smiled after electricity is supplied into her house.

▲ A house converted from a social place for unmarried

At Tuotuo New Village stands the last social place for unmarried of Lemo people. The Lemo people is a branch of Bai Ethnic Group and the social place for unmarried boys and girls is known as Guannahao - meaning a house to start romantic relationship. Today it has been converted into a Bed & Breakfast with air conditioning and water heaters.

To Meet the needs of Development, the Ttransformer Needs to Upgrade from 100 kVA to 250 kVA and all Naked Wires into Aerial Insulated Wires

The leader of Tuotuo New Village Kong Gencai smiled and said, “we are now supplied with stable power, but we are applying for building a pilot tourism village, so the expansion of the transformer is necessary.”

By the end of this year, the Bed & Breakfasts and rural tourism will be fully opened which is expected to bring the first income from collective economy to villagers.

Since Year 2016, to aid the Nujiang Prefecture alleviating poverty projects, China Southern Power Grid has invested a total of RMB 1.177 billion in constructing electrical infrastructure, completing the transformation and upgrade of the rural grids for the extreme poverty areas in Nujiang, one of the “three impoverished districts and three prefectures”.

▲ The 220 kV Fugong Transformer Substation

By June of this year, the comprehensive voltage eligibility rate of Nujiang Prefecture reached 98.62%, with an average capacity of distribution transformers of 2.4 kVA per house, improving their quality of power consumption.

Additionally:

·Electricity was supplied to 84 relocation sites once the houses were constructed

·The photovoltaic power stations was connected to the existing grids

·Power generated was consumed completely, and

·All natural villages were supplied with dynamic electricity

“The power alleviation efforts through electricity in Nujiang Prefecture was purpose-oriented, strictly-conducted and has made great achievements. This project is the product of your wits and strength,” said Wang Shiping, vice governor of Nujiang Prefecture Government, replying last September 7 on Reports on Poverty Alleviation by Nujiang Power Supply Bureau 2020.

Moving from mountains to a new life

Just as the running Nujiang River

The new lives of Nujiang people run forward

To an even brighter future