Tianjin's long-term solution for poverty eradication

An old Chinese proverb says: "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."

Deepening industrial cooperation and connectivity is the solution used by Tianjin to help less developed interior regions across the country eradicate poverty over the long term.

Since 2019, a cumulative total of 1.89 billion yuan in investment has been made by the city’s 273 enterprises to drive the economy in interior regions such as Shaanxi province, the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region and Gansu province.

An estimated 100,000 people have benefited from this investment through newly-introduced industries, newly-established supporting companies, and companies with expanding scale and productivity.

To facilitate its companies’ long-term development in these rural regions, Tianjin set up a fund of 40 million yuan to financially support their growth.

“Enterprises are encouraged to explore local market needs and technological gaps, and assist the optimization and upgrading of the industrial structure of these rural areas,” said Wang Weidong, deputy head of Tianjin, at a news conference on Wednesday.

Investment decisions in the targeted rural areas are made based on each region’s economic conditions, under the guidance of Tianjin’s universities and scientific research institutes.

To date, Tianjin has invested 700 million yuan in the construction of high-quality agricultural and sideline product bases in over 50 counties.

The bases, while supporting local pillar industries, also serve as raw materials of related industry and satisfy market demand in Tianjin. Thus, a long-term effective cooperation mechanism has been established based on the laws of the market economy, according to Wang.

Tianjin Food Group has helped more than 17,500 households in rural parts of Hebei province and Gansu province to get rid of poverty. Its cumulative investment of 1.23 billion yuan has boosted the local sheep industry.

“Since 2017, we have invested 110 million yuan in building agricultural bases and completing the whole industry chain, covering the whole process from planting and packaging to sales,” said Xia Ciju, chairman of Tianjin Wuzongyuan Agricultural Technology Company.

He also built a public library for a local primary school and donated more than 2,000 books to enrich the intellectual life and hope of young people.