Water from flooding on the Yellow River inundates part of the desert in June.[Photo/Xinhua]

Last year, Zhao and more than 50 others from registered poverty-stricken families signed contracts with Elion to maintain solar panels and care for the licorice planted between the panels.

His previous income from farming was barely enough to support his family, but he can now make 24,000 yuan ($3,700) a year.

"Previously, a small black-and-white TV set was the only home appliance we had," he said. "The set was given by a relative who changed to a color one more than 10 years ago. It stopped working after only a few years."

He said with his salary from Elion he had bought a 42-inch color TV, a fridge and a washing machine.

The company said it has solar panels with a capacity of 310 megawatts in operation and plans to expand that to 900 MW by next year.

Attracted by the business opportunities created by tourism development, 39-year-old Siren Babu and his wife, Yao Liping, returned to the desert in 2009 after working elsewhere for more than 10 years. The couple started a rural resort to serve tourists, offering accommodation and catering services. They also rent out more than 10 go-karts specially designed for the desert.

"When I was a little boy, we were isolated. It took three days and nights on a camel to reach the nearest town for shopping," he said.

The family now lives in the Kubuqi Desert park established by Elion in 2011 and can make more than 3,000 yuan a day during the peak summer tourist season. They have bought three cars for family use and, thanks to the road that has accompanied development, can reach the nearest town in a matter of minutes.

Wang said tourists visit the desert park about 200,000 times a year.

About 500 km west of Kubuqi, a group of entrepreneurs has turned to economic development after years of exploring remedies for desertification in Alxa League, a third of which is covered by three deserts: Badan Jaran, Tengger and Ulan Buh.

About 80 entrepreneurs set up the Society of Entrepreneurs and Ecology 14 years ago. One of its first initiatives was to try to stop residents from cutting down suosuo - a plant that can survive in the desert and help prevent desertification - by helping them shift to methane gas for heating and cooking, but it failed to achieve the desired result.

"The failure triggered heated discussion among the entrepreneurs on how to get residents to protect the trees," said Ai Luming, president of the society. "The group finally realized market means are needed to ensure that residents benefit."

Four years ago, the society launched a program that aims to plant 100 million suosuo in 10 years.

Ai said the payoff for residents is being able to grow Cistanche deserticola - a hardy, perennial, parasitic desert herb used in traditional Chinese medicine - which can be injected into the roots of the trees when they reach 3 years old.

He said the program has been a success, with about 37.5 million trees planted by the end of last year.

The society's SEE Foundation said Cistanche deserticola has been injected into more than 13,000 hectares of suosuo, and that residents can make an annual average of about 12,000 yuan per hectare.

Ai said the foundation is researching the herb to gather data on its medicinal value, and plans to bring in enterprises to process the herb into medicine or healthcare products. "As the yield of the herb continues to increase with the expansion of suosuo planting, the price of the herb may go down, which will affect residents' enthusiasm for tree planting," Ai said. "The introduction of the pharmaceutical industry is needed to give the herb more added value."