On August 6, a delegation led by the Deputy Chairman of the National Committee of CPPCC and President of All China Federation of Industry and Commerce Wang Qinmin, Vice Governor of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region Wang Heshan, Chairman of CMIG Board of Directors, along with several dozen outstanding private entrepreneurs from CMIG shareholder units visited the Ningxia Yanchi New Energy Integrated Demonstration Base and extensively surveyed the progress of the CMIG “Photovoltaic +” innovative poverty relief model. The Inspection Delegation paid a visit to the Party Construction Training Center constructed with aid from China Minsheng New Energy, learning about the status quo of promoting local employment, breeding, and financial services, farmers’ improved income by CMIG through photovoltaic industry, achievements of renovated farmers’ residences, and an improved ecological environment. Members of the Inspection Delegation not only personally experienced improvements in the living conditions of common residents in Yanchi County, but they also witnessed promising developments obtained by CMIG with regards to active implementation of corporate social responsibility as a convergence platform of private enterprises; furthermore, they experienced a sense of duty and responsibility for making tireless contributions to national poverty relief.
During his inspection tour in Ningxia in July this year, President Xi Jinping explicitly pointed out that there is still a population of 50 million impoverished people across the nation, and by 2020 we must accomplish total poverty elimination. CMIG actively responded to this order to attack poverty through large-scale investment. They are applying the “Photovoltaic +” innovative poverty relief model in Yanchi, Ningxia in order to effectively improve people’s living conditions and help Yanchi County to achieve their poverty elimination target ahead of schedule.
“Photovoltaic + Party Construction + Wisdom Aid” is the ideological basis for precise poverty alleviation
The Inspection Delegation first went to Nanliang Village, Gaoshawo Town, Yanchi County, where the Party Construction Training Center is located, which was constructed with aid from China Minsheng New Energy. They were holding a training on Tan sheep (domestic goat) breeding organized by the Yanchi County Poverty Relief Office. More than 35 villagers participate in the training every day. Chairman Wang Qinmin inquired about the details of grassroots party construction work and received feedback on all education training sessions following the setup of the party branch from villagers. Up till now, the Party Construction Training Center has completed occupational skill trainings for 550 people, which include new skills and knowledge beneficial to farmers such as Tan sheep breeding, vegetation planting, photovoltaic panel cleaning & maintenance, production of Chinese pastries, and so on. All villagers who received the training said they learned useful knowledge, and now they no longer make a living by simply relying on the government’s poverty relief subsidy. Instead, they are voluntarily making unremitting efforts to look for better career options.
Yang Shengwen, Party Construction Instructor of the Nanliang Village Party Construction Training Center, said that since the setup of the CPC Party Branch and Party Construction Training Center this year with help from China Minsheng New Energy, villagers’ spiritual outlook has undergone clear improvements through social and political education. There are obvious improvements in work initiatives and learning attitudes. It can be argued that grassroots party organization plays a key role in enhancing villagers’ poverty relief awareness.
Chairman Wang Qinmin praised such innovative attempts. He said CMIG indeed did a good thing. It not only effectively improved farmers’ employment and living conditions via economic means, but also efficiently raised the construction standard of new rural areas through party construction at the grassroots level. Such practices deserve encouragement and popularization, and it is hoped that more and more private enterprises can play important roles in the hard work of poverty elimination.
“Photovoltaic + Employment+ Finance” offers a sustainable guarantee for precise poverty elimination
In Ningxia, CMIG boldly tried large-scale investment in the photovoltaic industry to provide sufficient jobs to the local population; it further devoted considerable efforts to linking up financial services and resolved underlying worries of poverty-stricken households. When inspecting the photovoltaic project site in Yanchi, the Inspection Delegation learned in detail about improvements in local employment brought about by the photovoltaic project. With the cleaning and maintenance of photovoltaic panels, forage grass breeding under the photovoltaic base, and the green maintenance of the entire photovoltaic park zone alone, Phase I of the Yanchi Photovoltaic Project created several hundred new jobs. If the scheduled 2GW capacity is fully connected to the grid in the future, it can create at least 2000 jobs. Furthermore, CMIG is promoting farmers’ Tan sheep breeding assistance program. It set up a large Tan sheep breeding base in Yanchi County, where there are currently nearly 3000 Tan sheep. In the future it will become the biggest Tan sheep breeding center in Yanchi. Supposing there are 100,000 Tan sheep ready for slaughter by the end of 2016 according to plan, it is expected to directly bring 1000 farm households to take part in breeding, and about 3000 farmers will become industrial workers. This will bring about qualitative change to farmers’ income and living conditions.
CMIG joined hands with the Yanchi County Government to set up a professional company called China Mingsheng Rongyan Guarantee Company, which provides farmers with necessary breeding capital guarantee and support. Up till now, the guarantee company has handled over 800 business transactions, with a total loan amount of over 80 million yuan. This provides financial support to poverty-stricken households with registered files. Such a “Photovoltaic + Employment + Finance” three-dimensional poverty relief system creates advantageous guarantees for local precise poverty elimination.
“Photovoltaic + Beautiful Countryside + Natural Environment Improvement” builds ecological model of precision poverty alleviation
For a long time, Yanchi County has faced soil desertification and difficulty in residential living conditions in local areas. CMIG invested a total of 138 million yuan to complete a “photovoltaic + Beautiful Countryside” construction project for 868 households in five villages in Gaoshawo Town, completely changing the living environment for local residents.
The Inspection Delegation went to Phase I of the Yanchi Photovoltaic Demonstration Zone, which has been connected to the grid. They saw luxuriant green grass under sheets of photovoltaic panels. In the past, it was nearly impossible for forage grass to survive under the relentlessly blazing sun in Yanchi; today, with the protection of photovoltaic panels above, the effects of ground transpiration are greatly reduced and grass is growing quickly. With a green landscape, the previously “wind-swept and sand-blown” Gaoshawo Town takes on a new look of “Beautiful Countryside.”
Afterwards, the Inspection Delegation also went to the home of old Guo Xiuzhen, a farmer household in Nanliang Village. They asked the old man about his experience after moving into the new house built by CMIG, in addition to changes in employment for the younger generations. The renovation of Xiuzhen’s home is a part of the “Beautiful Countryside Construction” Project implemented by CMIG in five administrative villages of Yanchi County. This includes a uniformly planned residence, cattle pen, and courtyard, complete with all infrastructure facilities including water, electricity, heating, and photovoltaic panel, far better than previous living conditions.
Near the end of the inspection tour, Chairman of CMIG said, “After over one year of hard work, CMIG quickly implemented the “Photovoltaic +” poverty relief model, exploring a large-scale poverty relief system. In the future, we must fully bring out CMIG’s advantage in converging private enterprises, continue to strengthen investment in new energy fields and poverty relief, and improve the quality of poverty relief through large-scale effects of photovoltaic industry. We must continually make contributions to the state’s poverty relief undertakings and achieve unity between corporate social values and self values.”