Email
Print
A lady from Maogu village walks along a new road the village has built with Oxfam and government support. She says she can now move her goats up and down the mountain more easily. Photo: Lee FitzRoy/OxfamAUS.
A road to somewhere
Community road and water projects have given a remote mountain community in China renewed hope for their future, as Oxfam Australia's East Asia Program Coordinator Louise Mooney explains.
China is currently experiencing a massive societal shift, moving from a primarily rural, agricultural economy to one that is more urban and market driven. The effects of this shift are being felt strongly in the remote village of Maogu in Yunnan Province, where people live on less than 50 cents a day. Competition for scarce resources such as water, food and fuel, coupled with the attractiveness of paid jobs in larger centres, is making it difficult to keep young people in the village.
Yang Can Rong is an exception to this trend, being one of the youngest village leaders in the district and a strong advocate for village life. Rong and a representative village committee have been working with local government officials and Oxfam to establish projects that provide villagers with essential services and give them work and a reason for optimism about future village life.
As part of this process, the community came together and identified their biggest need as being a road linking Maogu village with the nearest market town, six kilometres away.
Previously, the only way to get produce to market was a gruelling trek along an old goat track, through harsh mountains. Not only did this greatly increase the cost of goods coming into the village, but also limited the amount and type of products villagers could take to market — most livestock, such as pigs, could not survive the steep three-hour walk.
Every household in the village helped build the new road, which was completed over six months, mostly by hand, using local materials. Oxfam and the Yunnan provincial government provided funds and technical support.
The recently-completed road now gives villagers better market access, resulting in income for farmers who previously grew produce mostly just to consume. It is also now easier for villagers, especially women and children to access schools, healthcare and other services provided in the main centre.
The road has reduced the cost of transporting products to market and into the village,” Rong says. “It has saved time and labour.”
A separate project to build 156 covered water tanks has provided clean water for the villagers, something they identified as another high priority. Previously women had to trek for about two hours a day up the mountain to collect water, as the village’s existing open reservoirs were leaking and prone to contamination.
While the impact of the community projects has been immediate, Rong believes the feelings of hope and optimism for the village’s future that have come about will be long-lasting. People are now enthusiastic about life in Maogu. Some villagers have already decided to cancel plans to move to the cities in search of work, while others are discussing new projects. These include planting fruit and other trees along the new road for food, income and environmental protection. They are also looking at alternatives to wood for construction and fuel to protect the area’s fragile forests.
The village committee says that because of Oxfam’s support, they now have the skills and confidence to negotiate new activities with the government. Government officials say they have learned from Oxfam’s participatory and flexible approach and seen the benefits of true community engagement.
Village thinking has become active towards self-management. This is a revolutionary change from expecting government help,” Rong says. “People have become more democratic and empowered ... We now have the skills and systems in place to ensure our future.