Aid officials visit the home of Tibetan villagers. [Photo by Yan Dongjie/chinadaily.com.cn]

Rishugma village in Huangnan Tibetan autonomous prefecture, Qinghai province, has undergone significant transformations with the help of officials from Tianjin who have been aiding the prefecture since 2010, including the construction of a 41.7-kilometer cement road in 2022, connecting the entire township, and the discovery of a stable water source at an altitude of 3,800 meters on Xiaqiong Mountain in 2019, providing 644 households with access to tap water.

In 2010, officials from Tianjin arrived in Hornasha town and invested 15 million yuan ($211,000) in aid funds for the road construction project. The project covered four administrative villages, including Rishugma village, Chunu village, Auhu village, and Yangdrung village.

The Rishugma village has access to tap water. [Photo by Yan Dongjie/chinadaily.com.cn]

Sangduo, the village head of Hornasha township, recalled that before the road was built, the village roads were filled with potholes, making roads extremely bumpy and unsafe, and significantly prolonging travel time. During the rainy season, the roads were severely waterlogged and muddy, while in winter, they became icy and nearly impassable.

"Put it in our own words from back then," Sangduo said, "'on sunny days, we're covered in dust; on rainy days, we're caked in mud'."

He added that the poor roadways had hindered the transportation of specialty agricultural products such as black highland barley, severely restricting economic development.

The cement road after the completion of the "Village Connectivity" project. [Photo by Yan Dongjie/chinadaily.com.cn]

The town is a typical mountainous area with a semi-agricultural and semi-pastoral economy. Traditional agriculture includes the cultivation of wheat, barley, potatoes, rapeseed, and peas, while specialty agriculture focuses on planting and processing oat forage and black highland barley.

"Rishugma village received assistance from Tianjin for its construction," Xue Dikun, a village official of Rishugma, said. "After the road was completed, it became much more convenient for villagers to purchase goods and find work outside the village."

A Tibetan village situated at an altitude of over 3,000 meters with 249 households and a total population of 1,050 people, villagers primarily rely on agricultural production, migrant work, business ventures, and dividends from village collective economic cooperatives as their main sources of income.

"Previously, we had to use horses or walk for three hours to reach Tongren city," Niangga, a 76-year-old villager who runs a small store, said. "Now, it only takes 40 minutes to get there by car."

A man sits in front of his store, saying thanks to the new road, it's easier to transport goods. [Photo by Yan Dongjie/chinadaily.com.cn]

Meanwhile, the village completed its drinking water project with Tianjin's aid funds, solving the villagers' water collection problem.

"Before tap water was available, villagers had to rely on storing rainwater in cellars," Wu Yonghua, the deputy mayor of Tongren city, said. "After the arrival of the aid officials, a stable water source was found. Now, as soon as you turn on the tap, water comes out."

After more than three months of intense work, the water supply safety project for key impoverished villages was fully completed on Oct 20, 2019, 84 days ahead of schedule. To prevent damage to the water supply pipes during winter, the depth for the underground pipe was increased from 1.5 meters to 2.6 meters, ensuring that the water pipeline would not freeze in winter.

"We must focus on major projects while also considering our overall work. We must truly use the aid funds where our people need them the most," Pei Zhi, the chief commander of Tianjin Aid Qinghai Command Post, the deputy Party secretary and the vice governor of Huangnan, said. "Let's truly enable the people to feel the effects of our counterpart assistance work."

Chen Yijun contributed to this story.