Higher education creates better life for villagers

A family reunion photo of the couple of Su Fa (front second right) and her husband Bai Yuzhuo (front second left). [Photo/Xinhua]

YINCHUAN－Growing up in mountainous Xihaigu, Ningxia Hui autonomous region, 54-year-old Su Fa believes in knowledge. But schools were beyond the mountain, getting in her way of receiving a decent education in what was once one of China's most impoverished areas.

"I never attended a school, but I felt my children must have access to education," Su said. "They don't have to suffer economic hardships like me due to a lack of knowledge."

Today, her son and two daughters make a good living in bigger cities, benefiting from their college degrees.

In 2000, with the help of the local government, Su and her family were relocated to a more habitable area near the Yellow River, as their hometown was long plagued by drought and a fragile ecology.

Su's husband worked as a village doctor after relocation, but the family could barely make ends meet, and they were included in households enjoying the minimum living guarantee. However, the couple spared no effort to cover the expenses of their children and agreed to send them to the school across the street.

In 2001, China began providing students in rural areas free compulsory education students while covering some of their living expenses. Students who come from poverty-stricken households also got subsidies during their high school and college years.

Su's son, Bai Yinbang, recalled how he received financial assistance every month in high school, and he paid off his student loans for college only six months after graduation.

According to a report on financial assistance to students in China, last year, over 21.7 million students from families with financial difficulties enjoyed free compulsory education and received living subsidies, with the total amount surpassing 21.7 billion yuan ($3.4 billion).

Also, over 500,000 students benefited from a State-subsidized student loan project, with the loan value totaling 37.8 billion last year.

"The national policies have significantly benefited my three children and relieved our burden," said Su's husband, Bai Yuzhuo.

Now, Bai Yinlan, the couple's older daughter, teaches math in a middle school, and the younger girl, Bai Yinfang, took after her father and became a doctor. Meanwhile, Bai Yinbang works to improve the computing and programming capabilities of teenagers.

Bai Yinbang said education brought life-changing opportunities for the family.

"Without national subsidies and free compulsory education, my sisters might have gotten married at a very early age, and I might have become a migrant lacking skills," he said.

This year, the Bai family said they are proud to witness their country realizing the goal of building a moderately prosperous society, but they are even prouder to have had the opportunity to live a better life.

In 2016, the couple built a new house in the village they were relocated to, equipped with modern facilities and a Chinese-style courtyard.

"Our children have all bought apartments in cities where they work," Su said.

It is never too late to study, according to Bai Yuzhuo, who is in his 50s. He was the oldest student in his class when he graduated a few years ago from a college in Ningxia, where he majored in clinical medicine.

Su, who was also unwilling to stay behind, started to learn words with her grandson and opened a social media account sharing the life of her big family. "I'm thrilled to share our happiness of our three generations online, and I usually receive plenty of likes following my posts," she said.

Xinhua