30 years of cross-provincial effort transform Minning in China’s Ningxia

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a view of Minning Town in Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

YINCHUAN, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- Located in the east of the Helan Mountains, Minning Town, named after the Chinese abbreviations of Fujian and Ningxia, stands as a living testament to China's poverty alleviation efforts, where a deserted land was turned into a new homeland for over 60,000 people.

In 1996, when the east-west poverty alleviation collaboration was carried out, southeast China's Fujian Province was designated to provide pairing assistance to northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. In 1997, construction began on Minning Village on barren land near Yinchuan, the regional capital. Later, officials from Fujian Province came here in batches to take part in the construction, along with assisting funds and projects. The cross-provincial effort transformed Minning into a modern town, with a population rising from some 8,000 to over 60,000, mainly living on growing wine grapes, mushrooms, and goji berries and raising cattle.

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows greenhouses in Yuanyi Village of Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

A farmer shows an edible fungus cultivated with the Juncao technology at Yuanyi Village of Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a livestock-photovoltaic integration project in Yuanyi Village, Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

This photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a livestock-photovoltaic integration project in Yuanyi Village, Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a beef cattle raising base in Mulan Village of Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a mushroom planting base which utilizes the Juncao technology in Yuanyi Village in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

Nowadays, the 4,866.67-hectare wine grape base and over 20 wineries in Minning Town receive more than 100,000 visitors annually. The Minning Industrial Park has attracted over 30 enterprises, with an output value exceeding 1 billion yuan (about 149 million U.S. dollars).

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a wine grape planting base in Yuanlong Village of Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows farmers picking wine grapes at a winery in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows the Minning Industrial Park in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

Workers are seen at a factory of sportswear manufacturer ERKE in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

A worker is seen by a sewing machine at a factory of sportswear manufacturer ERKE in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

A worker is seen at a factory of sportswear manufacturer ERKE in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

A worker assembles computers at an intelligent workshop in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows an intelligent data center of China Unicom in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

Workers patrol an intelligent data center of China Unicom in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

This photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows an intelligent data center of China Unicom in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

Over the past 30 years, taking Minning Town as the model, more than 110 demonstration villages for Fujian-Ningxia cooperation, 78 new villages for migrants and 423 resettlement areas for relocated people have been established in both regions, with a total of over 1.23 million people resettled.

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a view of Minning Town in Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows "See Minning Drama Village", a theater complex, in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

Actors perform during a drama at "See Minning Drama Village", a theater complex, in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

Actors chat with each other before a performance at "See Minning Drama Village", a theater complex, in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

Local villagers chat with each other before a performance at "See Minning Drama Village", a theater complex, in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

Tourists visit "See Minning Drama Village", a theater complex, in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Sept. 11, 2026. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a view of Yuanlong Village in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a view of Yuanlong Village in Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a view of Yuanlong Village of Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

An aerial drone photo taken on Sept. 11, 2026 shows a view of Yuanyi Village of Minning Town, Yongning County of Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)