Targeted Accurate Poverty Alleviation

One of the strategic deployments proposed by Xi Jinping to make up for the shortcomings in the process of building a well-off society in an all-round way is, on the basis of scientifically assessing the poverty status and the causes of poverty of the needy, to establish time points for poverty elimination, set poverty elimination goals, implement support measures, remove barriers to poverty elimination and achieve sustainable and stable poverty elimination. Since Xi Jinping first proposed “targeted poverty alleviation” during his investigation in Xiangxi, Hunan in November 2013, the term “targeted” has become the most important keyword for poverty elimination in China, leading the struggle for achieving all-round well-off society to a new stage. Central Economic Work Conference held in December 2014 pointed out that in terms of poverty alleviation, it was required to achieve targeted poverty elimination, prevent the average from covering up the majority, and pay more attention to guaranteeing basic livelihoods and to the lives of low-income people.

In October 2015, in the “Thirteenth Five-Year Plan” proposal adopted by the 5th Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, the implementation of targeted poverty alleviation and elimination became an important component of the shared development concept. The Central Poverty Alleviation and Development Work Conference held in November 2015 reviewed and adopted the “Decision on Winning the Tough Battle Against Poverty”, which determined to achieve targeted poverty elimination for 70 million poor people in the next five years, and proposed to lift about 50 million poor people out of poverty by 2020 through industrial support, transfer employment, and relocation, education support, medical assistance and other measures, and incorporate more than 20 million people who are completely or partially incapacitated in the coverage of the rural subsistence allowance system, and implement social security policies to get rid of poverty. The basic requirements for targeted poverty elimination are “six targeteds”, namely, targeted poverty alleviation targets, targeted project arrangements, targeted use of funds, targeted measures for households, targeted dispatching for villages and targeted poverty elimination results. The key approaches to targeted poverty elimination are “five batches”, that is, one batch of poverty elimination through development of production, one batch of poverty elimination through relocation, one batch of poverty elimination through ecological compensation, one batch of poverty elimination through development of education, and one batch of poverty elimination through social security.

In general, we need to lock in more than 70 million rural poor people under the current standards, establish archives, and implement policies by category, so as to achieve the following poverty elimination goals by 2020: removing the designation of all poverty-stricken counties, solving regional overall poverty and get rid of poverty in a real sense. Targeted poverty elimination doesn’t equal to targeted poverty alleviation. Xi Jinping emphasized that targeted poverty alleviation is aimed at targeted poverty elimination, which implies dialectical relationships of the means and goals, processes and results, quantitative and qualitative changes, and tactics and strategies between the two. Specifically, targeted poverty alleviation represents the means, processes, quantitative changes and tactics, while targeted poverty elimination represents the goals, results, qualitative changes and strategies. Compared with targeted poverty alleviation, targeted poverty elimination presents four main features: Firstly, it places greater emphasis on the feasibility of poverty elimination goals. To get rid of poverty, we must seek truth from facts, do not set a high goal, and avoid shouting slogans. The 5th Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee made it clear that when completing the building of a moderately well-off society in an all-round way in 2020, all the poor people determined according to the 2010 poverty standard shall be lifted out of poverty as scheduled.

The current poverty elimination standard in China is 2,300 yuan, per capita net income of farmers calculated at the constant price in 2010, comprehensively considering the price level and other factors, and updating the standard calculated at the current price year by year. Estimated according to the 6% annual growth rate, the national standard for poverty elimination in 2020 is 4,000 yuan per capita net income. Secondly, it puts more emphasis on the effectiveness of poverty elimination measures. Xi Jinping pointed out that the key to targeted poverty elimination is to “find targeted approaches, build sound systems and mechanisms, take practical moves in targeted policy formulation, make great efforts in targeted advancement, and reap real results in targeted implementation”. Thirdly, it puts more emphasis on the identification of poverty elimination targets. That is, the evaluation of the effectiveness of poverty elimination will shift from the traditional self-assessment of poverty alleviation subjects to the assessment of poverty elimination targets and third parties, with greater emphasis on the subjectivity of poverty elimination targets and the objectivity and impartiality of third-Party assessment.

Xi Jinping stressed that targeted poverty elimination must be strictly evaluated and accepted in accordance with the standard of designation removal. It is necessary to implement house-to-house account cancellation and determine whether someone gets rid of poverty or not with the masses. Fourthly, it puts more emphasis on the stability of poverty elimination effects. Poverty alleviation cannot seek quick success and instant benefits, namely, temporarily lifting poverty-stricken people out of poverty through the short-term large-scale blood transfusion mode. Instead of flood irrigation, targeted drip irrigation methods shall be adopted according to different conditions of poverty-stricken people, combining poverty alleviation with prompting ambition and education improvement, and turning “blood transfusion” into “blood making”.

For those who have been out of poverty, let them continue to enjoy poverty alleviation-related policies for a certain period of time, avoid the phenomenon of returning to poverty in the process of poverty elimination. A national poverty reduction strategy in the post-well-off era shall be developed as soon as possible, so as to extend support to relatively backward areas and relatively poor people, and consolidate the effectiveness of poverty elimination. Targeted poverty elimination has broad practical significance and far-reaching theoretical significance. First of all, targeted poverty elimination is the key to the completion of the goal of building a well-off society in an all-round way. Xi Jinping pointed out, “We shall look at our fellows to measure the well-off life, and the key is whether the poor fellow can get out of poverty.” Making the rural poor get rid of poverty as scheduled is an important sign to help ultimately determine whether China successfully builds a well-off society in an all-round way.

Secondly, targeted poverty elimination is fundamental to whether China takes the socialist road. Common prosperity is the essential requirement of socialism with Chinese characteristics and an important part of the theory of socialism with Chinese characteristics. To achieve common prosperity, in addition to enabling people with the ability and conditions to develop the economy to get rid of poverty and become rich, it is also necessary to avoid ignoring those who do not have the ability or the conditions to develop for the time being. This requires poverty alleviation for all difficult population, and this is precise the core of the thought of getting rid of poverty and achieving common prosperity. Finally, targeted poverty elimination is another major theoretical development achievement of Marxism in China and another major practice of the socialist road with Chinese characteristics. It also represents that CPC is honoring the solemn promise of leading all Chinese people to the path of common prosperity in socialism proposed when it was founded, which further strengthens our self-confidence in Marxist theory and the socialist road.