The first Forum on Poverty Relief in West Yunnan is held in Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, on Nov 24. [Photo/ynu.eud.cn]

The first Forum on Poverty Relief in West Yunnan was held in Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, on Nov 24.

Supported by Yunnan University (YNU), the forum was held by the university’s Center for Developing West Yunnan. The event, themed on innovation and cooperation, was designed to pool the wisdom of experts to discuss how to develop poorer areas and help them prosper. 

At the opening ceremony presided over by Yang Linhong, director of YNU’s Center for Developing West Yunnan, Yang Lin, Party secretary of YNU; Li Ping, a representative dispatched by the Ministry of Education to work in poor areas to help with local poverty relief, and Zhang Dongjun, executive deputy Party secretary of China Agricultural University, attended the forum and delivered speeches. 

Speaking at the forum, Yang outlined the history of YNU and the current conditions of the university. He highlighted the work undertaken by YNU to help alleviate poverty in less-developed areas. 

“One of the aims of the Chinese government is to wipe out poverty, improve people’s livelihoods and realize common prosperity,” he said. 

He said that experts and scholars should share their ideas and solutions to build the Center for Developing West Yunnan into a national research base for poverty relief and an international platform to share China’s ideas with South and Southeast Asia. 

In Li Ping’s speech, he extended his thanks to YNU for its long-term support for poverty relief in West Yunnan and praised the Center for Developing West Yunnan for its effective work. 

He briefed attendees on the measures adopted by the Ministry of Education in establishing targeted contact with less-developed areas in West Yunnan since 2011. 

Li expressed his expectations that all officials who were stationed in less-developed areas would make the best use of their strengths to engage themselves in poverty alleviation work. 

In Zhang’s speech, he recalled his previous experiences of working in West Yunnan and praised the aims of the forum. 

More than 50 scholars and experts from the Ministry of Education, Peking University, Fudan University, Shanghai Jiaotong University and Tongji University attended the forum.

Attendees to the forum pose for a photograph. [Photo/ynu.edu.cn]