Rural vitalization underway in Shanxi

North China's Shanxi province has made significant progress in agricultural and rural development in recent years, embracing a comprehensive approach to rural vitalization.

In the first three quarters, the province saw stable growth in agricultural production. The added value of its agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery industries reached 96.88 billion yuan ($13.35 billion), a year-on-year increase of 3.6 percent. 

Meanwhile, the per capita disposable income of rural residents hit 12,388 yuan, an 8.0-percent increase.

The province has established several key agricultural product clusters. Notable achievements include the construction of four national industrial clusters focused on sorghum, apples, traditional Chinese medicinal materials, and millet, as well as nine national modern agricultural industrial parks and 34 national industrial towns. 

In the first nine months, the revenue from agricultural product processing and sales in the province jumped 6.1 percent year-on-year to 259.6 billion yuan. 

Shanxi has continuously improved its rural infrastructure, public services, and living environment. The province has strengthened basic facilities such as water, electricity, roads, and telecommunications.

Efforts have also been made to address deficiencies in public services such as elderly care, education, and healthcare. Furthermore, Shanxi has successfully tackled waste and sewage management issues, carrying out toilet renovations and village cleaning campaigns. 

As of 2022, Shanxi had constructed 1,292 kilometers of paved roads in villages comprising 30 households or more, and completed 1,026 rural water supply projects and heating renovations for 448,000 households.

It had also built new toilets for 344,000 households, set up 633 sewage treatment facilities, and achieved a rural solid waste collection and disposal system coverage rate of 93.4 percent. 

The province has also implemented measures to increase farmers' income. It has finished reforming the collective property rights system in rural areas and issued equity certificates to members of collective economic organizations, with a cumulative total of 1.33 billion yuan of dividends distributed to collective economies.

More farmers in Shanxi have been equipped with technical skills, business acumen, and strong management capabilities, becoming the driving force of rural vitalization.

Currently, there are 444,000 agricultural businesses in the province, representing a 21.6-percent increase year-on-year. The province has trained 65,000 highly skilled farmers this year, with 52,000 receiving certificates of high-level agricultural skills. 

It has also cultivated 2,529 internet celebrities and local business leaders, creating 38,000 job opportunities.