As a professor who has studied poverty alleviation during his whole career, Li Xiaoyun said he was still shocked to see Hebian village on his first visit in 2015.
The village, about 40 kilometers from the border town of Mohan in Yunnan province, has 57 households and 206 people, the majority of whom are from the Yao ethnic group.
“Generally, there will be some kind of divide between the rich and the poor inside a village. But I did not see that in Hebian. Everyone in the village was poor.
“I saw lives that were extremely difficult; dark wooden homes, old and worn-out bedding, rickety furniture and people living with their livestock under the same roof,” recalled Li, who is a professor of rural development and…