Xi's Shanxi tour steps up war on poverty

President Xi Jinping meets with local villagers at Songjiagou New Village, a centralized resettlement site under the approach of alleviating poverty through relocation, in Kelan county of Xinzhou city, North China's Shanxi province, June 21, 2017. Xi had a three-day inspection tour in Shanxi from Wednesday. [Photo/Xinhua]

Xi turned to local officials: "What are you doing for this family? How many such cases are there in this county?"

"We are ready to resettle them in a better area. There are 3,537 people in 115 villages in similar situations," answered Wang Zhidong, Party chief of Kelan county which administers Zhaojiawa.

"How much will be spent on the resettlement? What are the new houses like? What will the villagers do after relocation?" Xi continued. His questions were every bit as detailed in another two households.

Precision is a key word in Xi's war on poverty, taking the right measures, at the right time, in the right way, according to the situation .

China has set 2020 as the target year to finish building a moderately prosperous society, which means complete eradication of poverty. The task becomes more difficult and costly as the process nears its end.

There must be better support and more effective measures, Xi told a symposium in Taiyuan, Shanxi's capital on Friday.

The central authorities coordinate the entire program, provinces take responsibility, while cities and counties ensure implementation of policies. Party and government chiefs hold the responsibility for all the work.

People stricken by extreme poverty must join the "moderately prosperous society" along with the rest of the nation, Xi said.