Virtual tour builds bridges

Chinese poverty alleviation, rural revitalization success shared with political parties from abroad

The young villager stood in front of a table packed with fruit and other local produce, as she introduced her livestreaming session to visitors at the e-commerce station.

But unlike many examples of the fast-growing and wide-reaching digital economy drawing admirers on-site, the onlookers at this stop on Thursday were "virtual" visitors from home and abroad.

They included representatives of major political parties in South and Southeast Asia, all taking part in an unprecedented "cloud gathering "to learn more about China's poverty alleviation and rural revitalization efforts, and sharing experiences of the country's success in its development programs and governance.

The "Real Time CPC: Cloud Gathering" event, hosted by the International Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, drew more than 200 leaders and young cadres from 16 political parties of countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Thailand. They were taken on a virtual tour of Shankou village in Southwest China's Yunnan province, the first trip of its kind to surmount the physical barriers of social distancing measures amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fighting COVID-19, stabilizing the economy and promoting people's livelihoods are urgent tasks facing all countries, with the CPC willing to work with all parties to continue deepening the exchange of experience in governance through various means such as the cloud gathering event, and work together to fight the epidemic and achieve common development, according to the event organizer.

"For a long time, the CPC has maintained friendly exchanges with the foreign political parties," the organizer said.

"By hosting this 'cloud gathering' event, we aim to enhance exchanges in experiences and share with regional parties … to promote common understanding and seek development through dialogue and cooperation."

To that effect, it also pointed to the recently concluded Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee, which laid out major social and economic development targets for the country's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period.

The plan will spur and strengthen the post-pandemic economic recovery of countries, according to the cloud gathering organizer.

"The session made clear that addressing the issues relating to agriculture, farmers and rural areas must be put top of the agenda. We need to fully implement rural revitalization and ensure that our success in poverty alleviation can dovetail with it," the organizer said.

"We hope through this 'cloud visit' you can see China's practice in poverty alleviation and economic revitalization in the countryside as COVID-19 prevention becomes a daily practice. And also share ideas on the role of grassroots party organizations."

Yang Shaocheng, member of the Party group of foreign affairs office of the Yunnan provincial government, said their assistance "has always been targeted at what the people need most".

Shankou village branch Party secretary Ma Xuehua said the focus is on providing the villagers with support to build capacity, to equip them with the necessary tools and infrastructure so that they can leverage industry and enterprise to improve their lives together with the whole community. The village, about 45 minutes' drive from provincial capital Kunming, has a population of about 600.

Shankou itself recorded per capita net income of 20,760 yuan ($3,140) last year, up from 13,178 yuan six years ago.

The achievements in poverty alleviation and rural development recorded within the last two decades have made Shankou a model for similar villages in the area, Ma said.

Other than residents' livestreaming programs, the online visitors also saw how poultry farms and rural tourism tapping green technology were encouraged with local government support, spurring local enterprise and agriculture.

Cloud event participants later shared their takeaways of the virtual tour in a "Neighborhood Party Talk" dialogue.

Kris Balthazaar, adviser to the chairman of the Sri Lanka People's Front or SLPP, said "grassroots programs such as this, understanding how the CPC works toward the betterment and empowerment of people, have been absolutely fortunate for us from Sri Lanka".

Bayazeed Kasi, from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, or PTI, said that "although COVID-19 has badly affected the global community …the Chinese leadership has truly emerged as the champions of global humanitarian relief".

"China helped Pakistan a lot, providing financial, technical and pandemic-related assistance and medical supplies," he said.

Tan Teik Cheng, vice-president of the Malaysian Chinese Association, chairman of its Malaysian Chinese affairs committee and chairman of its Belt and Road Initiative Centre, said the CPC programs on China's poverty alleviation and rural revitalization have provided "many useful experiences and mechanisms that can be used in Malaysia "to develop its own areas.

China's experience in poverty alleviation is an "excellent example" for Nepal, said Yubaraj Chaulagain, member of the central committee at the Nepal Communist Party.

China "has always been a source of inspiration for Nepalese in many ways", he said.

Chaulagain said the Nepalese people were also "deeply thankful to the government of China for providing unprecedented support" in areas such as disaster relief and "we want China to be a partner for Nepal's long-term development".

Similarly, U Win Khaing, central committee member of the Union Betterment Party, Myanmar, said his country needs good cooperation with China and other neighbors to develop together, tapping its rich resources such as agriculture and minerals.

"Political parties in Myanmar need to focus on rural revitalization, to achieve success in poverty alleviation and development," he said, adding that development projects under the Belt and Road Initiative as well as Myanmar-China Economic Corridor will significantly help Myanmar with its poverty alleviation efforts.

Contact the writer at alexishooi@chinadaily.com.cn