Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- An online opening ceremony of a virtual exhibition dedicated to the achievements of China and Uzbekistan in the fight against poverty was held today, the press service of the PRC Embassy in Uzbekistan said

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador Jiang Yan, First Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Ilkhom Norkulov, Deputy Head of the National Administration for the Revival of Rural Settlements of China Hong Tianyun made a welcoming speech at the ceremony.

“Poverty reduction is a problem that must be tackled on the path of any country to development and prosperity. As the world’s largest country in terms of population, China has done a great job of reducing poverty and achieving historic achievements. On 25 February, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced that China had won a victory in the fight against absolute poverty. Over the past eight years, China has lifted 98.9 million rural residents out of poverty, excluding 832 counties and 128 thousand villages from the list of poor areas. China fulfilled the task of eliminating poverty 10 years earlier in the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” Chinese Ambassador to Uzbekistan Jiang Yan said in her speech.

According to her, at the exhibition one can see not only the tasks set and the work done by the two countries to reduce poverty, but, most importantly, the tireless striving of the two peoples for a better life.

As Jiang Yan emphasized, China and Uzbekistan are all-round strategic partners and allies in the fight against poverty. China is ready to exchange with Uzbekistan its practice of passing the "path to the elimination of poverty", and to make joint efforts to achieve the common prosperity and well-being of the two peoples, the diplomat assured.

“In Uzbekistan, the issue of poverty reduction was raised to the level of a state political task by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in 2020. It is worth noting that the global pandemic that emerged last year increased the risks for the poor of the population to fall below the poverty line, which only increased the relevance of the measures taken to reduce poverty. Therefore, in a short period, the country has adopted a number of non-standard measures to support the poor, and conceptual materials are being developed for the long term,” said Ilkhom Norkulov, First Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Poverty Reduction of Uzbekistan.

He also added that China’s experience in fighting poverty is one of the most advanced and successful in the world. China’s achievements have been recognized at the UN level.

“In order to study this experience and implement successful projects implemented by China in the direction of poverty reduction, bilateral cooperation has been established. Several videoconferences have already been held, where the Chinese side presented practical measures to reduce poverty. This exhibition brings together the long-term successful experience of China and the first steps of Uzbekistan in reducing poverty. We hope that this virtual exhibition will be informative,” he concluded.

Hong Tianyun, deputy head of the National Rural Revitalization Administration of China, the country’s competent authority for poverty reduction, said in his speech, “As the largest developing country, China has always been an active initiator and powerful driving force in the global fight against poverty, agenda in this area. Especially after the 18th Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Central Committee, headed by Comrade Xi Jinping, adheres to the concept of development with an eye on the people, prioritized poverty reduction as the main task of comprehensively building a moderately prosperous society, thereby developing a basic strategy for targeted assistance to the poor strata of the population ".

“At present, the people of China are freed from the concern for food and clothing, and are adequately provided with the services of education, medicine, housing and clean drinking water. Infrastructure facilities in the field of transport, water management, electricity, telecommunications and the Internet are being improved. At the same time, the Chinese side is actively exchanging useful experience with foreign partners, and highly appreciates the enormous efforts made by the Uzbek side to reduce poverty against the backdrop of the negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. The National Administration for the Revival of Rural Areas is ready to establish contacts with the competent authorities of Uzbekistan to develop policies and consolidate the results of the fight against poverty, as well as to promote the revival of rural settlements,” added Hong Tianyun.

Photo and video materials and reports demonstrating the efforts of the two countries in solving this complex problem are posted on a specially created electronic platform.

The main goal of the exhibition is to lay the foundation for further practical cooperation in the fight against poverty between the two countries. Today, when personal contacts are limited due to the pandemic, modern technologies come to the rescue, allowing in an interactive format to talk about the accumulated experience. In the future, Uzbekistan and China intend to implement a number of important projects aimed at reducing poverty, and the exhibition is only the first step in this long way.

The site contains photographs, each of which has a unique story of helping people in their desire to improve their lives. Among them, for example, is the story of the girl Cai Qiyan, who once suffered from scoliosis. For her treatment, the family spent all their funds and, in fact, was left with nothing. The authorities helped them with the treatment and education of the girl, supported them financially, so that the family would get back on its feet.

Another story is a photo of 100 residents of Nongyun village, aged from 9 months to 113 years. This region is one of the most unfavorable for living due to the relief. Nevertheless, thanks to the help of the authorities, all the villagers were able to escape from poverty.