E-commerce heralds prosperity in remote south China village

HAIKOU -- Wang Chuanshu enjoys going door to door in his hometown to collect local farm products and help sell them via e-commerce platform.

The 42-year-old Wang from Changxi Village of Jiazi Township in Haikou, capital of south China's Hainan Province, has earned the nickname "rural buyer" for his unique work.

People in Jiazi make a living through rubber plantation, vegetable and sweet lime fruit farming, livestock rearing, among others. Earlier, locals like Wang could hardly sell their agricultural products outside their hometown due to low yield and the region's remote location.

But, that's a thing of the past now, thanks to China's rural vitalization efforts. Authorities have helped build an e-commerce bridge for local farmers to sell their agricultural products.

Fortune began to smile on the locals back in 2018 when a poverty-relief team set up an e-commerce platform and helped Wang sell sweet lime fruits via this platform.

"It brought me an income of nearly 6,000 yuan (about 941 U.S. dollars) in just a month," Wang said.

The outcome boosted his confidence and he was determined to expand the business. He also decided to share the sweetness of his success with his fellow villagers.

Wang went knocking door to door and gathering product information in his village. He would ride his electric bike to visit local farmers and collect the products. Thereafter, he would sell them at a slightly higher price through the local poverty-relief website and social media channels.

In 2019, authorities established an e-commerce service station in Changxi village to help build a bridge between local farmers and the consumers in cities, and Wang was appointed head of the station.

"Wang comes to buy beef from me almost every week. My products have now reached places outside Hainan," said Zhang Changtao, a local farmer.

Thanks to Wang's efforts, the online business has expanded to the entire Jiazi Township, and more than 200 families have jumped on the bandwagon.

China has paid great attention to rural vitalization in recent years. The State Council's executive meeting earlier this month adopted a plan to advance rural vitalization and fairly fast income growth of rural residents.

In 2020, Changxi Village saw product revenue exceed 1.3 million yuan in online sales, with daily sales hitting 100,000 yuan at peak, according to local authorities.

Drawing inspiration from Wang, more and more local farmers are becoming "rural buyers." Chen Yumei was one of Wang's suppliers, selling sweet lime fruits, crops, and chicken.

Since last year, she has become a "rural buyer." "Local people are enthusiastic about the business. They always bring farm products to me," Chen said.

Wang never stopped learning. He continues to enhance his knowledge of the internet by taking part in e-commerce and agricultural technology training programs.

He is now striving to explore new specialties in neighboring towns, and plans to forge cooperation with companies and supermarkets to "help more people achieve common prosperity."