Xi Jinping Vows No Poverty in China by 2020. That Could Be Hard.
"His problem is not the fears of Chinese people but the hopes of Chinese people." While international organizations like the United Nations and the World Bank have praised the government’s work in helping hundreds of millions of Chinese rise out of poverty in recent decades, some experts worry
that Mr. Xi’s plan is more about making headlines than bringing lasting change to poor communities.
On Wednesday, during a speech marking the beginning of his second five-year term as party leader, Mr. Xi described eradicating poverty by 2020 as one of his chief priorities, vowing to "leave no one behind in the march toward common prosperity." Mr. Xi has also used the fight against poverty to strengthen China’s global alliances, financing programs in Africa
and Southeast Asia, and urging the world to learn from China’s experience.
Some people may be looking to quick fixes rather than really addressing poverty." Mr. Xi has instructed officials to focus on alleviating poverty in rural places like Chashan, where farming conditions are poor, access to basic social services is limited
and residents struggle with heart disease and other ailments without a clinic nearby.
The plan targets the more than 43 million people who still live on the equivalent
of less than 95 cents a day, the poverty line set by the Chinese government.
As many as half of the 43 million people who are officially classified as in poverty could be disabled, according to the government.
Some say the government’s focus on 43 million people is too narrow, noting
that millions more live just above the official poverty line in conditions that are not much better.
Philip said that This is a very big hole in the overall picture, which the government rarely addresses,
"Nobody cares for me." Nearly seven decades after the Chinese Communist Party rose to power on a promise of prosperity for all, President Xi Jinping
has vowed to fulfill the Communists’ original intent, staking his legacy on an ambitious plan to complete the eradication of rural poverty by 2020.