Interviewee: Zhang Min, Head of the Teaching and Research Group at the Vocational High School of Mengla County, Xishuangbanna Autonomous Prefecture of Yunnan Province

I work in Mengla County, which is one of the poorest counties in China. I see vocational education as one of the most effective ways to alleviate poverty.

In the past few years, vocational schools in our prefecture have promoted the integration of industry and education and school-enterprise cooperation. Work has been done to better identify the needs of farmers and to equip them with modern farming skills. Support has also been given to address problems specific to agriculture, farmers and rural areas.

As we all know, Yunnan Province is famous for Pu’er tea. A student from our school put into practice the skills he learned at school, and helped his family start a tea farm after graduation. The venture turned out to be a great success, and he went on to found a tea farmers’ association that engaged people from nearby villages. Today, more than 12,800 households have benefited economically from this association.

I hope the government will continue to provide strong support to promote vocational education in poor and predominantly ethnic minority regions, thus improving access to quality education for economically disadvantaged children and adults. As such, efforts should continue to bolster the role of vocational education in poverty reduction and economic development.