A ceremony marking the beginning of another year of partnership between companies and villages to help eradicate rural poverty was held in Anshun, Guizhou province, on Jan 10.

The event was jointly administered by the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development, and the Guizhou Provincial Government.

Representatives of private companies from Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Chongqing, and another five provinces, participated in the event, during which 1,656 agricultural products from 1,185 local companies were exhibited.

The idea behind the partnership is to encourage companies to buy local agricultural products and promote the development of tourism in poor villages, in an effort to reduce poverty.

Ever since the partnership began in 2015, thousands of participating companies have helped poor villages produce quality agricultural products and expand their markets.

Guizhou plans to continue promoting high quality agricultural products in order to attract even more buyers, believing it will bring greater benefits to companies, villagers, and consumers alike.