Cooperative efforts boost incomes, jobs, tourism potential of countryside across nation

Recently, Zhao Changkun and his wife went on a 30-minute drive to their farm at Tayuanzhuang Tongfu Rural Revitalization Park, where they grow seasonal vegetables on a patch of about 30 square meters rented in the tourism compound.

Located in Tayuanzhuang village, Zhengding county in Shijiazhuang of North China's Hebei province, the compound has a play area for children, a small zoo with a dozen animals, a rain collection base for farmers, a meeting center and a field for picking fruits and vegetables, apart from small land parcels that are rented out to urban dwellers who want to experience the joys of agriculture.

As soon as they arrived, the couple pulled out a shovel and several bags to tidy up the plot and pick some purple perilla leaves and leeks that had ripened.

"We come here every other week and spend a morning tending to the plot, after which we take out ripe vegetables to cook at home," Zhao said.

His family simply loves the green vegetables that he has planted, he added.

Developed by Tongfu Group — a Shijiazhuang-based company with businesses focused on agriculture-related industries — the 100-hectare park has become a milestone on the village's path to rural revitalization since it began operations about two years ago.

The park received more than 2 million tourists last year, with sales revenue reaching 170 million yuan ($23 million), according to the group.

This has facilitated the village's rural revitalization, with residents more happy and earning better incomes than before.

Located about 300 kilometers southwest of Beijing, Tayuanzhuang began its transformation journey in 2008 when its leaders successfully invited companies to develop rural land, aiming to provide better living conditions for villagers, said Zhang Jinxia, a member of the village committee that provides services for villagers.

The cooperation between the village and enterprises has resulted in several companies, including Tongfu Group, investing in the village and developing its industries, mainly in rural tourism.

"One of the attractions is that the village is near the downtown area of Zhengding county and not far from Shijiazhuang. It also sits near the Hutuo River, a local waterway surrounded by beautiful scenery," she said.

According to Zhang, the cooperation has helped the village own shares in enterprises in return for providing land and some fixed assets, earning it a collective annual income of more than 10 million yuan.

The village's over 2,000 residents benefit greatly from the fruitful development, Zhang said.

"Almost all living expenses are covered for villagers, including heating fees in winter and property management fees," she said. Every villager also receives dividends at the end of each year, she added.

The village-enterprise cooperation in Tayuanzhuang has also led to more than 10,000 job opportunities for residents in the village and nearby places, said Tongfu Group.

Zhang said more than 4,000 people from outside the village have bought apartments and settled down there.

"What attracts them is that they can enjoy high living standards like in cities while enjoying the natural scenery and agricultural produce near at hand in villages," she said.

While Tayuanzhuang has found a way to improve the lives of villagers, some people across the country are still striving for better development on the path of rural revitalization.

According to agricultural experts, people living in rural areas often have low income levels that do not increase quickly.

Rural tourism is one way to tackle the issue, as it has fundamentally changed the traditional concept of farmers being restricted to output and income from their land alone, experts said.

"The development of agricultural tourism is of great significance for solving agricultural issues and promoting sustained and healthy economic growth in rural areas," said Li Hongbiao, a researcher at the China Academy of Northeast Revitalization.

Li said agricultural tourism will be a growth driver for China's rural economy in the future, referring to Tanghe township, a model for developing agricultural tourism. Tanghe is an ancient town in the central region of Northeast China's Liaoning province that boasts abundant historical and cultural heritage as well as natural resources. It has proactively developed its rural tourism potential in recent years, and made full use of its famous spring water to develop tourism industries, such as a hot spring sanatorium, water recreation and swimming pools.

Tanghe has also intensified efforts to improve the environment, focusing on the sanitation of scenic spots and public areas in the town in order to provide a better tourism experience for visitors.

The town's rich rural tourism resources, including natural landscapes, historical and cultural sites and folk customs, as well as activities to experience agriculture close at hand, have provided a solid foundation for the development of rural tourism.

According to local government statistics, the town saw more than a million tourist visits in the first 10 months of last year, with tourism revenue exceeding 70 million yuan.

However, the development of rural tourism still faces obstacles, such as insufficient participation by relevant entities, a lag in the construction of supporting infrastructure and widespread homogeneity, according to experts in rural affairs.

To address these issues, it is necessary to build a mechanism for large-scale participation in rural tourism development and increase the construction of supportive facilities for the industry, to promote the high-quality development of rural tourism, they said.