Nantong, in Jiangsu province holds the opening ceremony of the Rugao demonstration zone for rural micro-financial services, on Aug 29, 2018. [Photo by Qiu Yu]

Nantong, in Jiangsu province, held the opening ceremony of the Rugao demonstration zone for rural micro-financial services on Aug 29 to promote rural economic development.

Chen Xiaodong, Party secretary of Nantong, and Li Danjin, president of the Nantong branch of the People’s Bank of China, attended the opening ceremony. Local financial institutions awarded credit licenses to farmers representatives.

Nantong has formulated a three-year rural revitalization strategy. By 2020, the total output value of agriculture in the city is expected to reach 13.5 billion yuan ($1.98 billion); the forest coverage rate will be more than 26 percent with village green coverage rate at 30 percent. As a result, the per capita disposable income of rural residents in Nantong should increase by more than 9.5 percent annually.

According to the local government, the city is going to boost rural development through financial support. For example, the local government will increase credit input to agriculture and small rural areas, and provide financial support to agricultural enterprises and family farms.

More support will also be offered to encourage mass entrepreneurship and innovation and rural tourism and to improve the mobile payment and ecological environment in rural areas in order to raise living standards.