Reporter's log: Livestreaming, e-commerce play crucial role in Gansu's poverty alleviation drive

Artisans manufacturing traditional carved bricks are keen to use livestreaming to introduce their work to people across China and worldwide. [Photo by Matthew Bossons for chinadaily.com]

Zhang Hailin, a brick craftsman in Lingxia, tells me that he plans to use Douyin and Kuaishou to share his work and the area's brick-carving culture with a broader audience. He adds that the company he works for is using e-commerce platforms to sell products further afield.

Thanks to government training and a resulting job at a prestigious brick-carving workshop, Zhang Hailin has been able to care for his family of six, including his two sick, elderly parents. He also has been able to ditch his scooter in favor of a brand-new sedan – an investment that makes his commute to work much more comfortable during the frigid winter months.

China's progress in poverty alleviation is by all metrics incredible, and by 2018 the country had lifted a whopping 82.39 million Chinese people out of poverty. That said, there are still areas that lag. Without question, China's most difficult places to carry out poverty alleviation work are remote rural areas with limited economic opportunities and traditionally scarce access to new technology and internet services.