Yixian Poverty Alleviation Project
Location: Yixian County, Hebei
No. of Recipients households: 100
No. of animals given: 605 sheep
No. of pass-on families: 100
Targeted village is located in the middle of Hebei province and 130 km to the south of the City of Beijing. It has a population of 649 in 171 families. The whole village depends on 113 acres of arable land and 450 acres of mountainous fields for living, and there is no industry in the village.
The villagers earn their income mainly by selling labor, growing crops and raising animals, which takes up a proportion of 46%, 42% and 8%, respectively. In 2005, the annual average income of the village was RMB1, 200 (USD150) per person. And 150 families have an annual average income of RMB 500- 600 (about USD75), accounting for 88% of the families in the village. The villagers have barely enough to eat, and they have difficulty sending children to school and paying for their medical bills. The village government has not had an office to work in, let alone a cultural activity center for the villagers. The former village school was closed because there was no teacher. The economy in this Village has traditionally been animal husbandry and agriculture. However, it is restricted in economic development due to its scarce land resources, frequent droughts, poor animal breeds and lack of funds.
This project will provide 605 breeding sheep to 100 impoverished households in the village of Hebei Province. Tree seedlings, grass seeds, an artificial insemination station, veterinary supplies and technical training will also be provided to the community to improve local sheep production and improve living conditions and the local environment. A learning center will be built to provide a space for indoor project and community activities. Another 100 families from the village and surrounding area will benefit from “passing on the gift.” Additionally, this project will strengthen the target communities’ development capacities by supporting self-help initiatives.