Private capital tapped to help to alleviate poverty

A visitor from an ethnic group enjoys a sea of flowers in Yongzhou, Hunan province. The city has been acclaimed for exploring the use of online platforms to alleviate poverty. XUAN MU/FOR CHINA DAILY

Every little helps

The project's main functions are to provide a platform for crowdfunding, e-commerce and one-to-one assistance.

Similar to websites like Kickstarter, the Chinese service lets poor families or grassroots authorities request money for a specific purpose, with the minimum target amount set at 300,000 yuan.

For example, the poverty alleviation group in Longhui county, Hunan province, appealed for donations this year to help a Miao community of more than 100 impoverished families to develop the local tourism industry.

The authority asked for 1 million yuan to cover the costs of upgrading roads and other infrastructure in the scenic area, which has waterfalls and terraced fields.

Individuals with minor projects, such as building a greenhouse or buying equipment for a workshop, can use the one-to-one platform, which has no minimum target.

Donors can contribute as little as 1 yuan to help an appeal to reach its goal.

Meanwhile, registered members can offer to give away unwanted or surplus goods. The most popular items requested or donated so far have been cooking oil, vegetable seeds, fertilizers, clothes and books, according to Ruan.

Using the e-commerce function, farmers and traditional folk artists from poverty-stricken counties can sell agricultural products or handicrafts.

"Currently, the trading function mainly contains links to products from poverty-stricken areas available on other online shopping websites," Ruan said. "We're working to make further improvements so that in the future we can verify and make sure the sellers are indeed in need of assistance."

"Our ultimate goal is to tackle issues related to poverty by using the internet and improving social participation," Ruan added. "We're looking into expanding our approach to make sure the poverty-reduction efforts are targeted and accurate."