Poverty Alleviation of State Forestry Administration

　　【Overview】 In 2011, based on the forestry resource advantages of Jiuwan Mountain region, combined with the forestry reform and key ecological project construction, in order to improve the living conditions of impoverished areas and enhance the self-development capacity of impoverished areas and poor people, the State Forestry Administration adopted effective measures to further strengthen support for the poor areas and achieved remarkable results. Especially the convening of the central work conference on poverty alleviation and development clarified the specific objectives and tasks of ecological construction and industrial development for forestry-based poverty reduction in the next decade and gave a new mission to forestry industry in the anti-poverty strategy.

　　【Outline for fixed-point poverty alleviation】 According to the overall deployment and relevant requirements of the State Council Leading Group of Poverty Alleviation and Development on the anti-poverty work in the “12th Five-Year Plan” period and a certain period of time in the future, in accordance with the “Outline for Development-oriented Poverty Reduction for China’s Rural Areas (2011-2020)”, based on the actual situation of the development of forestry industry in Jiuwan Mountain region, the State Forestry Administration prepared the “Outline for Fixed-point Poverty Alleviation of the State Forestry Administration (2011-2020)”. On the basis of summarizing the experience of forestry sector in pairing-off poverty alleviation over the past decade for the implementation of the “Outline for Development-oriented Poverty Reduction for China’s Rural Areas (2011-2020)”, the Outline analyzed the situation and problems faced by the forestry poverty alleviation work and put forward the general idea, basic principles, objectives and key tasks for the forestry poverty alleviation during the "12th Five-Year Plan" period to guide the orderly implementation of forestry poverty alleviation during the "12th Five-Year Plan" period.

　　【Key poverty relief projects】  Combined with the implementation of key forestry projects, the State Forestry Administration actively coordinated relevant departments to increase investment in the construction of key projects such as natural forest protection, returning farmland to forest, treatment of stony desertification, the Yangtze River Protection Forest and natural reserves in the 19 designated poverty-stricken counties. In 2011, according to statistics, the State Forestry Administration allocated a total of 434 million Yuan for the forestry development in the 19 impoverished counties, which effectively promoted the ecological construction, boosted the development of forestry industry and helped local people to shake off poverty and become rich.

　　【Poverty alleviation by science and technology】 The State Forestry Administration entrusted International Centre for Bamboo and Rattan (ICBR) to hold four management and technical training courses for 60 cadres, 110 technicians and 230 labors. The training contents included: Bamboo processing, utilization and innovation technology, bamboo resource cultivation technology for high yield, bamboo forest pest control technology, bamboo and bamboo product art technology, high-yield camellia seeds breeding, camellia cultivation technique for high yield, tea oil nutritional quality and processing quality control techniques, etc. At the same time, the State Forestry Administration actively organized relevant experts and technicians to the rural areas to promote the application of appropriate forestry technology and give on-site guidance to help solve technical problems in the grassroots areas, which greatly improved the awareness and level of science and technology of local cadres and masses.

　　【Demonstrative zones for poverty-relief training】In order to mobilize more forestry farmers to get involved in poverty reduction through support by demonstration zones, the International Centre for Bamboo and Rattan of the State Forestry Administration helped the farmers in the training demonstration zones in Libo of Guizhou and Rongshui of Guangxi to organize two professional cooperatives engaged in production of bamboo products. At present, the two cooperatives have recorded sales revenue of more than 300,000 Yuan, and some members’ annual income is more than 10,000 Yuan, ten times the figure before they joined the cooperatives. The poverty relief technical trainings had good social and economic benefits and achieved good results in helping the farmers shake off poverty and become rich.

　　【Poverty alleviation by sending cadres】 In 2011, the State Forestry Administration sent 8 cadres at all levels (including ten in 2010) to the impoverished areas, who did a lot of practical things and good things for the masses of Jiuwan Mountain region, making a positive contribution to local ecological, economic and social development.

　　【Deliver newspapers to the countryside】  According to the fixed-point poverty alleviation plan in forestry industry, in 2011, the State Forestry Administration continued to carry out the activity of delivering newspaper to the countryside. The State Forestry Administration entrusted China Green Times Press to issue 500 copies of China Green Times to 380 township forestry stations in 19 impoverished counties in Jiuwan Mountains of Guizhou and Guangxi so that the people could learn the state’s forestry policies and various information for shaking off poverty in forestry industry in time.

　　【Pro-poor measures】 In accordance with the spirit of the central poverty alleviation and development work conference and the requirements of the “Outline for Development-oriented Poverty Reduction for China’s Rural Areas (2011-2020)”, to do a good job of poverty reduction, in 2011, the leaders of the State Forestry Administration went to carry out field research in the poor counties of Guangxi and Guizhou for 7 times to understand the problems for local economic and social development and explored solutions to the actual difficulties for forestry development.

1. Increase support for the ecological protection and construction of the poverty-stricken areas. The State Forestry Administration included Jiuwan Mountain areas into the coverage of key forestry projects such as the protection of natural forest resources, returning farmland to forest, the shelterbelt construction in the Yangtze River and the Pearl River Delta, rocky desertification control, wildlife protection, nature reserve construction and wetland protection. Combined with the implementation of the relevant national planning, it strive to invest more in the forestry industry of poor regions in Jiuwan Mountain areas during the “12th Five-Year Plan” period to curb the trend of local ecological deterioration, reduce the natural disaster hazards, improve the production and living conditions of poor areas, broaden the survival and development space and provide a strong guarantee for the sustainable development of regional economy and society.

2. Strengthen the guidance and support for the development of forestry industry in poverty-stricken areas. While strengthening ecological construction and protection, it actively guided and supported the development of emerging industries with local characteristics such as the economic forest, fast growing timber, industrial raw material forest, bamboo products, forest food, forest tourism and forest herbs in the poor areas to broaden income sources for poor households and cultivate rural economic growth points. Through project construction, it effectively enhanced the self-development capacity of the poor for poverty reduction as soon as possible.

3. Deepen forestry reform and make innovations to the institutional mechanism for forestry poverty alleviation. Through actively providing financial, project, information and technical support for poor areas, we explored the establishment of the mechanisms and models that can effectively be connected with the market and can constantly expand reproduction through self-accumulation and development; continued to deepen the reform of collective forest right, formulated and improved the policies, further released the huge potential of forest and woodland resources to help farmers embark on the path of poverty reduction; vigorously developed the non-public forestry, encouraged forestry enterprises to attract private capital for forestry poverty alleviation and development through market operations such as launching joint stock companies, contracting, renting, merging and acquiring businesses, and mobilized all circles of society to get involved in forestry poverty alleviation to bring new vitality to the poverty alleviation work with new mechanisms.