论文部分内容阅读
Aygul Ismayil is a typical housewife living in the remote village of Qigirtmak， in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. She had been depending on her husband’s work on a small farm， which only generates 10，000 yuan （$1，534） a year， to feed a family of six.
Qigirtmak is located in the town of Wupu， in east Xinjiang. Due to the scarce amount of arable land in the village， many villagers stayed home without other employment options， worsening the poverty situation in the region even further.
In Xinjiang， there are currently 2.61 million people living under the national poverty line—defined as an annual income of 2，300 yuan（$375） for rural residents—accounting for more than 20 percent of the rural population in the whole region.
“Now I can earn more than 2，000 yuan（$307） per month， which is more than my husband’s earnings. It’s his turn to take care of the children and do the housework now，” said Ismayil.
The change to her family was brought about by the establishment of the Wupu Branch of the New Century Fashion Factory in February 2015， which was set up with the help of a group of community officials who were tasked with alleviating poverty in the village. All of the factory’s workers are women who had previously been unemployed.
Since 2014， Xinjiang has mobilized 200，000 officials in different levels to over 8，600 villages to eradicate poverty and improve livelihoods by understanding the real poverty situation and needs of local people.
Even so， the aid group encountered a variety of difficulties in Qigirtmak from the onset. The villagers， for example， were not actively seeking employment from the factory， since they had trouble changing their previous lifestyles.
“The factory was planning to hire 50 workers initially， but less than 10 registered，”claimed the leader of the aid group Yusup Resur.
The officials had to talk to the villagers one by one， explaining the benefits of working in the factory. Meanwhile， they promised to offer training on skills and labor laws and regulations before they started working. In addition， the villagers were encouraged to undergo training with 1，000 yuan （$153） in subsidies and 380 yuan （$58） for their meals and transportation during the interim period.
Currently， 50 people have all begun working at the factory. They also exercise every morning， take Uygur and Mandarin language courses at noon， and participate in some entertainment activities organized by the factory and the aid group. Following the successful introduction of the fashion business， the Xazat Food Co. also opened shop in Qigirtmak. Among the 160 vil- lagers who competed， the company eventually hired 35 workers.
The aid group also established more business organizations based on local conditions， including a housekeeping service center and eight professional cooperatives. Currently， 184 local villagers have new jobs， making up 92 percent of surplus labor forces.
“Our way of life has changed， the living standard is improving and our minds are also changing. We talk more about development， and have started to dress up and entertain ourselves by singing and dancing，” said Ahyit Gayiz， a villager and training teacher with the Wupu Branch of New Century Fashion Factory.
New opportunities
Abdu Semet， 27， lives in Yerken County， Kashgar Prefecture in southwest Xinjiang. In 2011， he went to look for work in Aksu City， which is some 450 km away from Yerken. He became a skilled construction worker， but unfortunately suffered an accident at work which rendered him immobile. He had to return to Yerken to be taken care of by his grandma， his only relative. Since then， they had no other source of income except from the subsistence allowance offered by the government.
In 2014， in order to assist the 870，000 people in poverty without working capability in Xinjiang， the regional government increased the monthly subsistence allowances per capita for urban and rural residents from 158 yuan （$24） and 65 yuan （$10） in 2009 to 297 yuan （$46） and 144 yuan （$22） respectively.
Some of the government officials who were designated to reduce poverty in Semet’s village， Tatarcag， specifically helped him apply for a 40-square-meter house for low-income families. They also applied for wheelchairs and walking sticks from the local federation for the disabled and gave them to physically challenged villagers.
Besides economic aid， the officials encouraged Semet to challenge himself and to use the Internet. Through interaction with other villagers as well as from partaking in entertainment activities， Semet has now become more optimistic about his future.
Chances for cooperation
Thirty-year-old Mahmut Tursun， nicknamed Amu who is also from Kashgar Prefecture， is more fortunate than Abdu Semet. Amu was born into a farmer’s family in Shufu County， 20 km from Kashgar City. He had met his parents’expectations to become a civil servant， and worked in Kashgar’s customs office after graduating from college. He nonetheless quit three months later， after meeting Liu Jingwen.
Qigirtmak is located in the town of Wupu， in east Xinjiang. Due to the scarce amount of arable land in the village， many villagers stayed home without other employment options， worsening the poverty situation in the region even further.
In Xinjiang， there are currently 2.61 million people living under the national poverty line—defined as an annual income of 2，300 yuan（$375） for rural residents—accounting for more than 20 percent of the rural population in the whole region.
“Now I can earn more than 2，000 yuan（$307） per month， which is more than my husband’s earnings. It’s his turn to take care of the children and do the housework now，” said Ismayil.
The change to her family was brought about by the establishment of the Wupu Branch of the New Century Fashion Factory in February 2015， which was set up with the help of a group of community officials who were tasked with alleviating poverty in the village. All of the factory’s workers are women who had previously been unemployed.
Since 2014， Xinjiang has mobilized 200，000 officials in different levels to over 8，600 villages to eradicate poverty and improve livelihoods by understanding the real poverty situation and needs of local people.
Even so， the aid group encountered a variety of difficulties in Qigirtmak from the onset. The villagers， for example， were not actively seeking employment from the factory， since they had trouble changing their previous lifestyles.
“The factory was planning to hire 50 workers initially， but less than 10 registered，”claimed the leader of the aid group Yusup Resur.
The officials had to talk to the villagers one by one， explaining the benefits of working in the factory. Meanwhile， they promised to offer training on skills and labor laws and regulations before they started working. In addition， the villagers were encouraged to undergo training with 1，000 yuan （$153） in subsidies and 380 yuan （$58） for their meals and transportation during the interim period.
Currently， 50 people have all begun working at the factory. They also exercise every morning， take Uygur and Mandarin language courses at noon， and participate in some entertainment activities organized by the factory and the aid group. Following the successful introduction of the fashion business， the Xazat Food Co. also opened shop in Qigirtmak. Among the 160 vil- lagers who competed， the company eventually hired 35 workers.
The aid group also established more business organizations based on local conditions， including a housekeeping service center and eight professional cooperatives. Currently， 184 local villagers have new jobs， making up 92 percent of surplus labor forces.
“Our way of life has changed， the living standard is improving and our minds are also changing. We talk more about development， and have started to dress up and entertain ourselves by singing and dancing，” said Ahyit Gayiz， a villager and training teacher with the Wupu Branch of New Century Fashion Factory.
New opportunities
Abdu Semet， 27， lives in Yerken County， Kashgar Prefecture in southwest Xinjiang. In 2011， he went to look for work in Aksu City， which is some 450 km away from Yerken. He became a skilled construction worker， but unfortunately suffered an accident at work which rendered him immobile. He had to return to Yerken to be taken care of by his grandma， his only relative. Since then， they had no other source of income except from the subsistence allowance offered by the government.
In 2014， in order to assist the 870，000 people in poverty without working capability in Xinjiang， the regional government increased the monthly subsistence allowances per capita for urban and rural residents from 158 yuan （$24） and 65 yuan （$10） in 2009 to 297 yuan （$46） and 144 yuan （$22） respectively.
Some of the government officials who were designated to reduce poverty in Semet’s village， Tatarcag， specifically helped him apply for a 40-square-meter house for low-income families. They also applied for wheelchairs and walking sticks from the local federation for the disabled and gave them to physically challenged villagers.
Besides economic aid， the officials encouraged Semet to challenge himself and to use the Internet. Through interaction with other villagers as well as from partaking in entertainment activities， Semet has now become more optimistic about his future.
Chances for cooperation
Thirty-year-old Mahmut Tursun， nicknamed Amu who is also from Kashgar Prefecture， is more fortunate than Abdu Semet. Amu was born into a farmer’s family in Shufu County， 20 km from Kashgar City. He had met his parents’expectations to become a civil servant， and worked in Kashgar’s customs office after graduating from college. He nonetheless quit three months later， after meeting Liu Jingwen.