Comprehensive e-commerce demonstration in villages has been carried out in 261 impoverished counties

Xinhua News Agency, Lanzhou, September 27 (Reporter Tu Guoxi) The role of the internet in boosting poverty alleviation is being brought into play. At present, multiple departments have carried out comprehensive demonstrations of e-commerce entering rural areas in 261 impoverished counties across the country, and the poverty alleviation effect of e-commerce has begun to show.

Reporters learned on the 26th from the national on-site meeting on targeted e-commerce poverty alleviation held in Longnan City, Gansu Province, that in recent years, many places in China have promoted the deep integration of e-commerce with targeted poverty alleviation and targeted poverty eradication through various forms, and have already explored multiple models of targeted e-commerce poverty alleviation. E-commerce poverty alleviation has not only created new economic growth points in impoverished areas, but has also helped impoverished people increase income, reduce expenditure, and escape poverty.

Statistics from the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development show that at present, among the 496 comprehensive demonstration counties for e-commerce entering rural areas determined nationwide by the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Commerce, and the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development, impoverished counties account for more than half, totaling 261. It is understood that the three departments have reached consensus and will strive within the next 3 years to extend this demonstration to all impoverished counties with the necessary conditions.

At the same time, a number of e-commerce platform enterprises have also participated in e-commerce poverty alleviation. The State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development has signed strategic poverty alleviation cooperation agreements with Suning Commerce Group and JD Group. Suning Commerce Group will carry out the “Double Hundred Demonstration Action” in 100 impoverished counties, while JD Group has selected 200 impoverished counties as poverty alleviation demonstration counties. This will drive more than 2 million registered impoverished people to increase income and escape poverty.

In early 2015, the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development designated Longnan City, Gansu Province, to carry out a pilot for e-commerce poverty alleviation. Longnan is located in the concentrated contiguous extreme poverty area of the Qinba Mountains and is one of the poorest areas in Gansu Province. By vigorously developing e-commerce, Longnan City currently has 9,139 online stores, has achieved a cumulative online sales volume of 4.17 billion yuan for agricultural products, directly helped 640,000 impoverished people increase their per capita income by more than 430 yuan, and promoted employment for 55,000 people. At present, Longnan City has explored and formed multiple targeted e-commerce “poverty-driving” mechanisms such as “one store driving multiple households,” “one store driving one village,” and “one store driving multiple villages.”

According to the plan, the State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development and other departments will, while accelerating the improvement of basic conditions for e-commerce development such as roads, the internet, and logistics in impoverished areas, promote the standardization, scaling, and branding of agricultural specialty products in impoverished areas, train at least 1 e-commerce poverty alleviation talent for each impoverished village, build a batch of sales network platforms and e-commerce service platforms for impoverished areas, add online purchasing and sales agency functions for grassroots traditional outlets, and create more than 40,000 village-level e-commerce poverty alleviation demonstration online stores.