NPC deputy in SW China makes solid efforts to end poverty

By Pang Geping, Zhang Yunhe, People’s Daily

Liu Ruyuan is a man in his thirties from Changjiang village, Bobai county, southwest China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Though the deputy to the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) is still at a young age, he has helped lift many out of poverty in local communities.

“I have a scale in my heart that always weighs my practices.” That’s what the man always says. He believes to fulfill his responsibilities as an NPC deputy is the only way to reward his fellow villagers.

Liu has a well-known goat breeding base. By sharing his expertise in goat keeping, he has brought wealth to over 630 households and 1,600 impoverished villagers in Guangxi’s Guilin, Liuzhou, Qinzhou and Yulin.

Last June, he was reached by inhabitants in Daogen, another village in Bobai county who wanted to breed goats with him because their pigeon business wasn’t making money.

Although Liu is an expert in goat breeding, he did not agree to the request immediately. Instead, he made field investigations, visiting pigeon farms and wholesale markets, and consulting agricultural experts. After researching, he found that goat breeding was not a cost-efficient business for the villagers from Daogen, and suggested them to continue with their pigeon business. However, he told them to shift from meat pigeons to female pigeons as the eggs were more profitable.

“There’s no one-size-fits-all approach in developing industries, and it’s always better to find ways out than starting over,” he explained.

Earlier this year, Liu learnt that it cost around one yuan ($0.14) on average to transport an egg to other provinces, which was high for the villagers. Therefore, he started to search for feasible solutions. 

His previous experiences paid off. Liu had studied the circulation of agricultural products last year before he submitted a proposal on the construction of cold chain logistics to the second session of the 13th NPC, so he told the pigeon farmers to cooperate with major logistics companies, and the cost finally fell by 80 percent.

Now, the pigeon business in Daogen village is prospering. Seven impoverished households in the village have built pigeon farms, earning an average of 3,000 yuan each month. The largest farm has more than 20,000 pigeons and generates 600,000 eggs on a yearly basis.

“We can’t just simply throw them businesses for poverty alleviation, and villager shall work with enterprises to create wealth,” said Liu, who is always seen in the fields of Bobai county talking to villagers and making investigations.

“What NPC deputies do is always for the people,” Liu noted. Although it’s easier said than done, Liu has kept such a promise through persistent efforts.

“A competent deputy should make every effort to help the residents live a better life,” he said.

On March 9, a pigeon farmer feeds the pigeons at a demonstration site in Luolong village, Rongshui Miao Autonomous County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (By Liao Ziyuan, People's Daily Online)