Remote county promotes tourism to boost rural economy

Located deep in the Qinling Mountains, the remote Zhenping county, under the jurisdiction of Ankang city, Shaanxi province in Northwest China, has in recent years actively promoted rural cultural construction and the development of rural homestays to boost the rural economy and improve the lives of farmers.

China Daily recently explored Zhenping county, selected by the Ankang Municipal Party Committee and Government for building an integrated urban-rural public cultural service community.

Since the beginning of this year, Zhenping has established a county-level cultural community center, along with seven town-level cultural community sub-centers and 27 village-level cultural community joint sub-centers across various towns and villages. This initiative is geared towards enhancing public cultural services in rural areas, fostering access and engagement for local residents.

According to the center's staff, the construction of an information management platform and the use of AI portrait recognition technology at the Cultural Community Center enable real-time monitoring of the usage of public cultural service facilities, activity progress, and attendance statistics across the county.

“We conducted a survey of local cultural and artistic talents, built a dynamic talent pool of over 1,100 individuals, and upgraded 240 public cultural service facilities and equipment,"said a member of staff.

"This has significantly boosted the reach and accessibility of essential public cultural services."

In recent years, Youyi village in Chengguan town has launched the "Homestay+" project, leveraging its unique ecological resources and beautiful natural environment. By incorporating traditional village crafts, it has transformed everyday activities like sowing and workshop art into a distinctive leisure experience for rural tourism.

To date, the village has restored 56 earthen wall houses, converting them into rammed earth homestays. It has also developed micro workshops, taverns, inns and vegetable gardens, boosting the courtyard economy and raising the average household income by over 15,000 yuan ($2,075).

Zhu Li, director of the Chengguan Town Public Service Center, said that in Youyi village's development efforts, the focus is on preserving old forests, historical buildings, and traditional skills. By blending time-honored customs with modern folk practices, they aim to connect new business models with the broader market. The goal is to create a leisure space that is deeply rooted in local culture, offering a rich and authentic experience.

The county develops cultural initiatives based on local conditions, fosters the integration of high-quality cultural resources and services between urban and rural areas, and enriches the spiritual and cultural life of the community. This, in turn, helps drive the growth of rural tourism and the local economy.