BEIJING, Oct. 13. 2026 — The United Nations once labelled it as one of the least suitable places for human habitation on the planet. Chronic drought and barren soil condemned its residents to a life of dire poverty. Yet today Xihaigu, at the southern tip of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, is being hailed as a model of socio-economic progress and environmental rejuvenation.
Key to this success is a nationwide strategy, introduced in 1996. designed to encourage China’s more developed east coast regions to cooperate with poverty alleviation efforts in the less-developed west.
To mark the 30th anniversary of the strategy’s launch, China Media Group has produced From Barren Land to Prosperity: Fujian-Ningxia Partnership. This major new documentary chronicles how a decisive shift from external financial support to locally-driven, self-sustained growth and rural revitalisation has been achieved in Ningxia with support from investors and experts from Fujian Province. Interviews with entrepreneurs, resettled residents and front-line aid workers reveal how large-scale ecological resettlement projects, the promotion of industries ranging from wine-grape cultivation to rural e-commerce, and steady improvements to education, health care and the infrastructure have all contributed to creating a vibrant model of economic development.
Commenting on the remarkable transformation, UN Under-Secretary-General Melissa Fleming says the United Nations would welcome the wider application of this development model.
From Barren Land to Prosperity: Fujian-Ningxia Partnership premiered on the CMG channel CCTV-4 on October 5.