Desertification control efforts in Yutian County in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region have been drawing in significant investment and enhancing local farmers' income.
Since 2020, Yutian County has seen a significant reduction in dust storm days, dropping from 179 days to 128 days annually, with sandstorm days decreasing from 24 to 7.5.
The clearer skies and reduced sandstorms have made the area more livable and also attracted a surge of investors and entrepreneurs.
Attracted by the improved eco-environment and the high quality of local rose cultivation, Chen Tianwei from Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region invested in building a factory to produce rose water and other products derived from the flowers.
"It is an industry with very high added value. Our equipment is designed to improve the quality of rose water to a higher standard," said Chen.
Another entrepreneur Lin Fucai has established a clothing factory in Yutian.
"The sandstorms have decreased significantly, tree-planting efforts have been successful, and now every village is connected by roads. Our workers are all very happy," said Lin.
Lin's clothing factory employs nearly 300 local youngsters, enabling young migrant workers to return to their hometown.
Uzmanjan Abuduani, an employee at the factory, is one such returnee. Previously employed in east China's Qingdao, he now enjoys working close to home and living with his family.
"I am happy. Now I can pick up my child and then come back to work," he said.
According to local authorities, the number of enterprises in Yutian's industrial park has grown from over 20 in 2015 to 89, including nine large-scale industrial enterprises.
"The entrepreneurs came before and inspected the are, but they were put off by the frequent sandstorms, finding the area hard to adapt to. In the past two years, our environment has greatly improved, and they are now happy to invest in Yutian. This has led to more job opportunities and boosted farmers' income," said Nurahemet Izbak, Deputy Mayor of Yutian County.
Xinjiang's desert control efforts attract investment, improve farmers’ life
