GUIYANG, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Sandu, the only autonomous county of the Shui ethnic group in China, has cast off poverty.

Located in southwest China's Guizhou Province, Sandu Shui Autonomous County has a population of 400,000. Among them, 268,000 are Shui people, accounting for 63 percent of the ethnic group population in China.

Meng Yuxi, director of the county's poverty alleviation office, said the impoverished population of the county dropped from 134,410 in 2014 to 5,157 in 2019, with the poverty rate decreased to 1.53 percent by the end of 2019.

"Such a shocking speed of shaking off poverty is unprecedented in the county's history," Meng said.

Plantations of fruits, peppers, tea and traditional Chinese medicine, as well as livestock raising, were the major sectors that brought income, he said.

The Shui ethnic group is known for its 3,000-year-old "Shuishu," the peculiar pictographic characters, which has been listed in the national intangible cultural heritage.

Wei Shifang, deputy chief of the county's research institute of the Shui ethnic culture, said the local cultural relics, including the traditional characters, ponytail embroidery and paper cutting, have been not only preserved but also contributed to the poverty alleviation of the county by the way of attracting tourists.