More and more local farmers are benefiting from a pilot model of poverty alleviation, which, by receiving government-sponsored training programs and moving to cities to work in the secondary and tertiary industries,allows them to gradually shake off the poverty and start to live prosperous lives.

Fang Ju'e, a 43-year-old rural women, said in an interview with Xinhua Thursday that she has worked as a housekeeper in the nearby city of Wenzhou, and now can earn about 700 yuan (about 84.64 US dollars).

"I realized I could also contribute to my family economically like the male family members do, which makes me very proud of myself," Fang said, hoping that her monthly income could increase to 1,000 yuan after finishing the second phase of education on housekeeping.

Liu Xiao, an 20-year-old rural girl, has the same ambition as Fang. She said she would like to be a driver in cities.

"I know cities badly need drivers like me, so I'm very confident of finding a good job in cities with a monthly salary ranging from 800 to 1,500 yuan, which is close to the average monthly income of the urban resident," Liu said.

According to official information, Quzhou city kicked off its pilot poverty reduction campaign last year. Within the pilot model,the local government is responsible for providing free training opportunities for the farmers who had little benefit from farming activities.

Farmers have free choice in their training content, and after they finish all the training programs and qualify from the examinations, the local government would also help them to find job vacancies in cities, said Cai Qi, a Quzhou municipal official.

The latest official statistics showed that housekeepers and security guards from Quzhou underdeveloped rural areas are gettingpopular in nearby cities like Hangzhou, Ningbo and Wenzhou. By theend of this year, 135,000 local farmers had received training programs and the average annual income reached 3,980 yuan, up 10.71 percent over that of the previous year, among which, 64 percentof the income growth is created by those farmer workers.

Zhang Youyun, a senior consultant with the International Labor Organization, said that the key to the success of the pilot model is based on the correct evaluation of local conditions.

They have realized that what makes the local farmers impoverished is their lack of skill and education, Zhang said, adding that the partnership established between the production institutions and farmer workers within the model's framework alsocontribute to develop the local economy and protect farmer's interests.

To address the poverty issue and boost economic growth, China needs initiatives like this, Zhang noted.

Source: Xinhua