The government has teamed up with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to alleviate poverty among China's minority groups, in part by helping them develop culture-based industries and tourism.

The project, "Poverty Reduction for Ethnic Minorities in China," was launched earlier this month in three regions in western China, namely Qinghai, Yunnan and the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

The State Ethnic Affairs Commission (SEAC) will contribute US$5 million to the program, while the UNDP will contribute US$2 million.

Building leadership capacity, developing communities and encouraging the growth of culture-based industries are some of the project's goals.

Khalid Malik, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in China, said the project would support government efforts to alleviate poverty.

"Since more than 46 percent of the poor people in China are from ethnic groups, successful efforts to reduce their poverty will contribute significantly to the efforts of poverty reduction of the whole country," Malik said in a press release from the UNDP last week in Beijing.

Tourism and cultural industries will play a key role in Poverty Reduction for Ethnic Minorities in China, said Yang Fan, a deputy director at the SEAC who works with the program.

"Ethnic minorities in China have unique cultural and natural assets," Yang said. "These should be protected and sustained. This program will help develop their culture while at the same time alleviating poverty."

The project is also expected to train 400 officials throughout China 90 from the provincial level and 310 from the local level in the latest poverty-reduction techniques.

"It is crucial for policymakers at the local-government level to learn advanced management measures to reduce poverty," said Zhou Meixiang, a program manager at the UNDP International Poverty Reduction Centre in China.

Beyond offering management courses and advice to officials, the program will also encourage individuals and communities to strengthen their capacity to fight against poverty.

More than 10 villages will be selected to take part in community-development projects. For example, minority farmers will set up grassroots organizations to address the challenges they face collectively.

"This project will focus on scaling up efforts to better organize individuals through associations of product producers and service providers," Malik said.

"They will learn decision-making processes based on their own needs and how to search for home-grown solutions to fight against poverty."

Zhou said the goal was to educate villagers about movements in the marketplace and help them foresee changes in supply and demand.

(China Daily November 28, 2006)