Africa can learn from China's poverty alleviation efforts

China's poverty alleviation efforts are grounded in the principle of "serving people", as well as upholding and carrying forward the governing philosophy of the older generation of national leaders. The battle against poverty has demonstrated the determination of the Communist Party of China to put the interests and concerns of the people first. Lifting people out of poverty and allowing them to live a good life are the cornerstones of social stability and development.

China's poverty alleviation efforts are comprehensive and multidimensional, addressing various aspects such as subsistence allowance, medical security, education, housing and entrepreneurship. The country has also strengthened supervision to ensure the smooth and effective implementation of poverty alleviation efforts. The targeted policies have proved to be effective, enabling a large number of people to embark on the road to prosperity. People living in poverty have had their lives transformed by better living conditions and better quality of life covering food, clothing, housing, transportation, education and healthcare.

Under the strong leadership of the CPC, China has mobilized the entire society, particularly capable large enterprises, to actively participate in poverty alleviation actions and fulfill their social responsibilities, while ambitious young people have returned to their hometowns to contribute toward local development. In addition, various innovative policies and programs have been implemented, resulting in successful cases and rich experience.

All these are worthwhile lessons for developing countries, and also valuable models to demonstrate how developed countries can assist developing countries. It should be noted that China has created a miracle — its poverty reduction efforts have enabled one-fifth of the world's population to achieve stable and prosperous lives, contributing to global stability and peace, and setting a tangible example for poverty alleviation efforts worldwide.

There is a Chinese saying that goes: "If you want to get rich, build roads first." Across China, I have seen the government build roads in impoverished mountainous areas. This has helped villagers travel more conveniently and provided them with a bigger market for their agricultural products. African countries can learn from such cases to improve the infrastructure in rural areas to reduce poverty.

I have also seen many Chinese companies playing a role in poverty alleviation efforts such as some large supermarkets providing supportive market channels to receive high-quality fruits, vegetables, meat and other products from poor areas. In Conghua, Guangdong province, local residents have seen their incomes rise by combining tourism and agriculture.

These practical cases are inspiring and not difficult to implement. For African countries such as Morocco, the characteristic industries in remote areas such as beekeeping and medicinal herbs are worth developing through supportive policies from the local government. These can include subsidies to villagers or encouraging local enterprises to provide wider market channels so that villagers can earn more and improve their quality of life.

African countries can also give full play to the role of nongovernmental organizations. The Africa-China Cooperation Association for Development is an example. The association has played an active role in poverty alleviation. In the past five years, it has launched a number of initiatives, such as providing Chinese companies with practical instruction and support to establish high-standard industrial bases in Africa in cooperation with the leading local companies in order to address multiple daunting challenges such as water scarcity or energy shortage. The association is actively exploring new paths to combine the public demand for poverty reduction with effective business models to achieve long-term development.

Furthermore, African countries can organize scholars to conduct extensive research on China's representative cases of poverty reduction, and carry out innovative practices suited to their own national conditions, while addressing funding challenges through international aid.

The author is president of Africa-China Cooperation Association for Development, in Morocco.