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West China

Across China: Rural women from inhospitable area embrace new lives

2020-12-15 09:27:21

YINCHUAN, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- Hai Yan, a 27-year-old rural woman who dropped out of primary school in northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, never imagined that she would be riding a wave in a booming e-commerce business.

"My daily routine used to be taking care of my two kids, working in the fields and attending to the livestock," said Hai, who used to live in Xihaigu, which was until recent years one of the country's most impoverished areas.

Now, thanks to a government-sponsored relocation project, she has moved to a new urban area with better facilities, complete with a career of her own. The move has not only improved Hai's economic situation, but has given her a new zest for life.

She has a job at a workshop that deals with the deep processing of local specialties such as wolfberry. Part of her work involves online sales, conducting livestreaming sessions every afternoon.

"I help sell local agricultural products online for two hours every day," said Hai, as she put on her makeup prior to a livestreaming session.

This is the first job that Hai has ever had, and she is both proud and satisfied. Her husband works away from home most of the year, earning rates of pay that would not have been possible in his hometown. However, he is no longer the only wage-earner in the family.

The relocation, which took place eight years ago, saw Hai's family move from their inhospitable hometown to Minning Township, near the regional capital city of Yinchuan.

Hai said that she is now used to the bustling urban lifestyle in her new home, as are the 50 or so women in workshop, most of whom lived on farms before moving to the town.

"Women used to be undervalued in their families, but their lives have changed dramatically since getting jobs and incomes," said Xu Meijia, who is in charge of the workshop.

Moreover, female employees are quick to enroll their children in tutoring classes, despite fees that can account for over one-third of their income, according to Xu. "They believe that they are uneducated, but the next generation should not be."

According to Xu, over 90 percent of her workers are mothers with only primary-school education. In the beginning, few were able to use a computer, but their hard work and persistence soon paid off.

Hai earns about 2,500 yuan (382 U.S. dollars) per month, and the salary goes up if she volunteers to work extra hours when the orders pour in during the busy season.

"They not only contribute their efforts to fighting poverty within their families and the region, but also set a good example for the younger generation who will be the future of our township," Xu said.

On Nov. 16, Xiji, the last poor county in Xihaigu, was removed from the list of poverty-stricken counties, marking the end of poverty in all nine poor counties in the region amid the country's efforts to eradicate absolute poverty by the end of 2020. Enditem

 

Editor:Jiang Yiwei