The theme for this year's
United
Nations Day was “rural women fighting hunger to reduce
poverty.” And here in China, UN agencies held a photo contest of
pictures snapped by rural Chinese women.
One of the three top prize winners, Zhang Yinfang, a Tibetan
housewife from the Tianzhu Tibetan Autonomous County in northwest
China's Gansu Province, was present at Wednesday's ceremony in
celebration of United Nations Day held in Beijing Wednesday.
Another winner is from the Yi Ethnic Group in southwest China's
Yunnan Province and the third from northwest China's Shaanxi
Province.
“It is the first time I have been to Beijing and met so many
foreigners,” Zhang said. Her photo of a widely grinning rural woman
hugging a bunch of wheat was displayed on the wall of the
exhibition hall.
Many rural women across the world live in extreme poverty, and
history proves that women tend to bear especially heavy burdens as
a result of poverty, environmental degradation, diseases and
natural disasters, said Kerstin Leitner, resident representative of
the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) China, at the ceremony.
In
Asia, about 60 percent of food is produced by women, while they
only own 2 percent of the land and receive 1 percent of all
agricultural credit, according to Leitner.
"However, women have proven their ability to improve their lives
with their own efforts," she said. “Chinese rural women performed
well in those poverty-relief projects jointly launched by the UN
agencies and the Chinese government.”
Zhang Yinfang said that she borrowed a small sum of loan from a UNICEF project and invested it
first in a sheep-raising plan and then for planting vegetables,
dividing the costs of the projects with others.
“My family earns more than 2,500 yuan a year now,” she said. The
annual income of Zhang's family used to be 700 yuan (US$87).
“And I gained more respect from my husband now that he realized I
can do something,” she added.
The cooperation in poverty alleviation between the UN agencies and
the Chinese government has been a success, more joint efforts will
be made, said Lu Feijie, director of the State Council Leading
Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development.
China has always paid much attention to poor women in rural areas.
Many efforts have been directed to pulling them out of illiteracy
and offering training in simple skills, Lu added.
The country succeeded in reducing the poverty-stricken population
from 250 million in 1978 to the present 30 million.
On
the walls of the exhibition hall were all 60 photos taken by
Chinese rural women. They represent various subjects and have
diversified styles.
( October 25, 2001)