The central government invested in tree planting in Inner Mongolia autonomous region's Kubuqi Desert in 2012.[Photo/Xinhua]

Entrepreneurs in Inner Mongolia are playing a key role in combating desertification through economic development, as Hou Liqiang reports.

The Kubuqi Desert, 800 kilometers west of Beijing, used to be a significant source of the sandstorms that plagued northern China until about a decade ago. A strong breeze could carry sand to the Chinese capital overnight, but it was residents of the desert who suffered the most.

"When I was young, we had a lot of troubles with sand. Often, in just one night, sand would pile up outside our house, blocking the door," said Chen Ningbu, a 70-year-old resident of the desert in Ordos, Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

But by Sunday, which was World Day to Combat Desertification, the desert's vegetation coverage had risen to 53 percent, up from virtually zero three decades ago. Residents say it is even rare to see a sandstorm in the desert nowadays.

Meanwhile, at least 100,000 people have been lifted out of poverty as afforestation continues in the country's seventh-largest desert, which covers an area of 18,600 square kilometers.

What has happened in Kubuqi is emblematic of the private sector's efforts in combating desertification with economic development, which not only improves the environment for residents, but also contributes to the country's poverty relief campaign.

Other private sector companies have also joined the battle against desertification in other parts of Inner Mongolia.

In 1988, when Wang Wenbiao, head of a government-owned salt factory, started to plant trees in the desert, he did so for a simple reason: to prevent sand from burying his factory. He did not expect it would be the beginning of a greening of the desert that has lasted 30 years.