In the decades following the start of market reforms in 1978, China has made enormous strides in lowering poverty levels nationwide. However, there is still a lot of work to be done, especially in regard to rural poverty in China.

While government efforts have focused on developing infrastructure and industry, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) decided to take a culture-based approach in ethnic minority areas, which are among the poorest in the country.

The Agricultural Development Bank of China, a policy bank controlled by the country’s central bank, recently revealed that they will lend a total of three trillion yuan, close to $460 billion, to the government for poverty-reduction measures aimed at rural areas.

It is true that rural poverty in China dominates the country’s poverty statistics, but poverty is especially concentrated among ethnic minorities.

In 2013, China’s State Ethnic Affairs Commission estimated that over 40 million ethnic minority people live in extreme poverty. While they constitute only 8.49 percent of China’s population, they make up 32 percent of the country’s poor.

Also, according to statistics published by the UNDP, 267 of the 592 Chinese counties classified as “poor” are ethnic minority-populated rural areas.

China’s ethnic minorities suffer from a greater degree of economic and social exclusion. Not only do they lack access to basic infrastructure, but their geographic isolation also makes it more difficult for them to succeed in an economy where mobility and information are key.

Recognizing the unique challenges that ethnic minorities face, the UNDP started a project called “Culture-based Development for Ethnic Minorities in China” in 2006. The plan involved working with companies, nonprofit organizations and government departments to develop traditional cultural resources into new economic opportunities.

While its $3.75 million budget was minuscule compared with those of state programs, there were quite a few success stories. One was the Mosuo, a small group of 53,000 people residing in the far reaches of the Yunnan and Sichuan provinces in southwestern China.

The Mosuo pride themselves in weaving, but they have fallen on hard times both economically and culturally. Their products are increasingly sold at lower prices by merchants in order to compete with mass-produced textiles, and there are fewer and fewer weavers because younger members of the Mosuo choose to move to the cities.

The UNDP decided to help a Mosuo village in Yunnan Province promote their craft on the international stage. On May 19, 2013, they struck a deal with Singaporean department store chain Tangs for 160 handwoven cloths. The sale price averaged 200 yuan, or a little over $30 per item, of which the weavers stood to make 120 yuan–about $18.

While the profits were modest by most standards, the Mosuo found new life for their products on the world market. At the same time, they were able to preserve an important part of their cultural heritage.

In addition to Tangs, the UNDP has also partnered with Shanghai-based cosmetic firm Jala Group, Mary Kay and China Women’s Development Foundation. To date, it has sponsored 27 local poverty-reduction initiatives centered on ethnic minorities.

While the culture-based development project officially ended in 2015, the UNDP has continued to help ethnic minority communities. Projects such as this one play an important role in the fight against rural poverty in China because they target the people that are most in need and most likely to be left behind in national anti-poverty campaigns.

– Philip Katz

Photo: Flickr