Luocheng Mulam autonomous county, Hechi, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. [Photo/gx.people.com.cn]

Luocheng Mulam autonomous county is located in north Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, with an administrative area of 2,658 square kilometers and a population of 383,200. It is home to 124,700 members of the Mulam ethnic group, who account for 33.16 percent of the county's total population.

Its cultivated land area is 44,835 hectares, its forest area is 174,900 hectares, and its forest coverage rate is 66.41 percent. It boasts important mineral resources including coal, iron, tin, copper, nickel, antimony, lead-zinc, and gold, of which it has 101 million tons of coal reserves.

Luocheng is the only Mulam autonomous county in China. It has convenient transportation, special karst geology and landforms, a unique natural environment, as well as strong traditional ethnic customs, forming rich tourism resources.

In addition to the Mulam ethnic group, Luocheng is also inhabited by ethnic groups like the Zhuang, Han, Miao, Yao, and Dong. Each ethnic group has a long history and has formed its own unique ethnic culture and customs. The ethnic characteristics of their festivals and activities are outstanding and colorful.

In 2019, the county achieved a regional GDP of 5.57 billion yuan ($80.19 million), an increase of 5.3 percent. Its fiscal revenue was 536 million yuan, an increase of 15 percent, its investment in fixed assets increased by 23 percent, and the added value of its industrial enterprises above designated size increased by 1.8 percent. The total retail sales of consumer goods was 2.26 billion yuan, an increase of 6.6 percent, while the per capita disposable income of urban residents and rural residents increased by 8.1 percent and 11 percent respectively.

In 2019, 23,900 impoverished people and 32 poverty-stricken villages were lifted out of poverty, while the incidence of poverty dropped 2.2 percent. The county raised 336 million yuan in funds at all levels to provide strong financial support in its poverty alleviation efforts. It has integrated funds of 120 million yuan to develop village-level collective economic projects, helping all administrative villages receiving a collective income of more than 40,000 yuan.