China's iconic revolutionary base Yan'an bids farewell to poverty

Poorly educated, Yang Yufan saw no future, until he was enrolled in a four-month vocational training course as a sailor at the college.

After graduation, he got a job on a general cargo ship in Southeast Asia.

Now, his monthly salary is 1,200 U.S. dollars. He paid off the debt for his parents and built a two-story house in his hometown.

"Sailors trained in the college are very popular by employers for they carry the Yan'an spirit characterized by arduous struggling," said Yang Yancun, department head of shipping engineering of the college.

The city government has also cut tuition fees to encourage more people from poor households to participate in various vocational training, according to Yang.

Yan'an will continue to help the remaining impoverished people shake off poverty, and strive to enter a moderately prosperous society in all respects with the rest of the country by 2020, said Xu Xinrong, Party chief of the city.