Homecoming: Young woman returns home to revitalize her village

"My most fundamental motivation is the hopes of the villagers," says Zhang Guifang, a graduate of Tianjin Agricultural University in Tianjin, who answered the call to revitalize the place in which she was born and raised, as the Party branch secretary in the village of Sanjia and dean of the village committee.

In 2018 Zhang joined the Communist Party of China at her university and later set up a business in Tianjin. But soon the elders of her village asked her to return and help with the revitalization of her hometown in Henan province. Zhang decided to return home and in 2020 she was elected to the local government in Sanjia village.

Since Zhang returned to her hometown she has worked on pandemic prevention, food relief and creating jobs. Many of the changes may seem small, but Zhang says she has sensed that they have had a powerful impact.

"What I can do is work on changing stereotypes about rural areas and try to make the development of China and advanced technology penetrate more into the countryside, and to create more opportunities for villagers to help them become prosperous."

Through her efforts, Zhang says she hopes to draw attention to the village.

"I always think that only when more people come to Sanjia can we produce more opportunities and give villagers greater prospects."