PHOTO / CHINA
In pics: a Chinese town transformed by east-west poverty alleviation collaboration
By Xinhua Published: Sep 16, 2026 10:03 AM
Actors perform during a drama at a theater village cultural project in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. Located in the east of the Helan Mountains, Minning Town, named after the Chinese abbreviations of Fujian and Ningxia, stands as a living testament to China's poverty alleviation efforts, where a deserted land was turned into a new homeland for 60,000 people. In 1996, when the east-west poverty alleviation collaboration was carried out, southeast China's Fujian Province was designated to provide pairing assistance to northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. In 1997, construction began on Minning Village on barren land near Yinchuan, the regional capital. Later, officials from Fujian Province came here in batches to take part in the construction, along with assisting funds and projects. The cross-provincial effort transformed Minning into a modern town, with a population rising from some 8,000 to over 60,000, mainly living on growing wine grapes, mushrooms, and goji berries and raising cattle. Nowadays, the 4,866.67-hectare wine grape base and over 20 wineries in Minning Town receive more than 100,000 visitors annually. The Minning Industrial Park has attracted over 30 enterprises, with an output value exceeding 1 billion yuan (about 149 million U.S. dollars). Over the past 30 years, taking Minning Town as the model, more than 110 demonstration villages for Fujian-Ningxia cooperation, 78 new villages for migrants and 423 resettlement areas for relocated people have been established in both regions, with a total of over 1.23 million people resettled. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

Actors perform during a drama at a "theater village" cultural project in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. Located in the east of the Helan Mountains, Minning Town, named after the Chinese abbreviations of Fujian and Ningxia, stands as a living testament to China's poverty alleviation efforts, where a deserted land was turned into a new homeland for 60,000 people. In 1996, when the east-west poverty alleviation collaboration was carried out, southeast China's Fujian Province was designated to provide pairing assistance to northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. In 1997, construction began on Minning Village on barren land near Yinchuan, the regional capital. Later, officials from Fujian Province came here in batches to take part in the construction, along with assisting funds and projects. The cross-provincial effort transformed Minning into a modern town, with a population rising from some 8,000 to over 60,000, mainly living on growing wine grapes, mushrooms, and goji berries and raising cattle. Nowadays, the 4,866.67-hectare wine grape base and over 20 wineries in Minning Town receive more than 100,000 visitors annually. The Minning Industrial Park has attracted over 30 enterprises, with an output value exceeding 1 billion yuan (about 149 million U.S. dollars). Over the past 30 years, taking Minning Town as the model, more than 110 demonstration villages for Fujian-Ningxia cooperation, 78 new villages for migrants and 423 resettlement areas for relocated people have been established in both regions, with a total of over 1.23 million people resettled. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)


A farmer shows an edible fungus cultivated with the Juncao technology at Yuanyi Village of Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026.(Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

A farmer shows an edible fungus cultivated with the Juncao technology at Yuanyi Village of Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026.(Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)



A worker assembles computers at an intelligent workshop in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026.(Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

A worker assembles computers at an intelligent workshop in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026.(Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)



An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a view of Minning Town in Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a view of Minning Town in Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)