The seventh plenary session of the 11th CPC Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Regional Committee is held in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region on Dec 23. [Photo by Huang Ke/gxzf.gov.cn]

Guangxi is expected to reduce its poverty rate by more than 1.25 million people in 2019, lifting 1,268 impoverished villages and 21 impoverished counties out of poverty, reducing the poverty incidence to below 1 percent, said Lu Xinshe, Party secretary of Guangxi, at the seventh plenary session of the 11th CPC Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Regional Committee.

Guangxi, as one of the main areas in China’s poverty alleviation efforts, was riddled with poverty, with a large number of impoverished people and a higher degree of poverty. In 1978, the impoverished rural population in Guangxi reached 21 million, and the poverty incidence in the entire region was as high as 70 percent.

In recent years, Guangxi has focused on industrial development, infrastructure construction, and targeted poverty alleviation. After years of struggle, the region has realized a historic transformation from being impoverished and lagging economically to achieving prosperity.

With the poverty alleviation collaboration platform between Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region and Guangdong province, Guangxi has addressed the problem of agricultural product sales in impoverished areas. As of the end of November, Guangdong and Guangxi have helped purchase and sell 19.6 billion yuan ($2.8 billion) of specialty agricultural products in impoverished counties of Guangxi, covering 213,800 impoverished people.

"Guangxi will adhere to poverty alleviation as the top priority and work hard to ensure that the task of poverty alleviation is completed as scheduled," added Lu.