UN Program Helps Chinese Country Women Shake off Poverty

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Saturday, August 10, 2002

UN Program Helps Chinese Country Women Shake off Poverty

"A hen for a buffalo" is always a profitable deal say some village women in southwest China's Yunnan province when talking about a United Nations (UN) loan program available to them.

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"A hen for a buffalo" is always a profitable deal say some village women in southwest China's Yunnan province when talking about a United Nations (UN) loan program available to them.

Jiang Dongzhi, from Longling county in the province, once had difficulty feeding and clothing her family. Now she has an annual income of 12,000 yuan (1,445.8 US dollars), thanks to the Social Development Program for Poor Areas (SPPA) under the United Nations Children's Fund.

Jiang snowballed the 1,000 yuan loan she got from the SPPA to the four or five digit annual income by growing vegetables throughout the year with the help of plastic film and by raising pigs and hens.

SPPA is a program targeted at women in poverty-stricken areas and aims to help them rise above poverty. Besides providing loans,the SPPA also offers training programs to rural women, giving them agricultural instructions and advice.

The program, launched in Longling in June 1996, has given direct help to 3,630 needy women in 29 villages. It has so far helped to lift 1,526 households with 6,100 people in the area out of poverty, with their annual income per capita increasing by 1,200 yuan (144.6 US dollars).

Official statistics show each 10,000 yuan (1,205 US dollars) loan brings a profit of 3,800 yuan (459 US dollars) to the needy women in the county.

The program has provided 7.6 million yuan (915,663 US dollars) in loans in Jiang's county and has held 220 practical training courses in subjects like planting, breeding, and processing. According to official statistics, a total of 18,000 women (person time) have attended the courses.

The courses also include literacy classes and provide the women with basic knowledge of health care and community environment protection.

County officials say there have been no cases in the county of failure to repay the loans on time.

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