The official China Central Television (CCTV) on November 22, claimed major strides in poverty alleviation in Tibet. It said through unremitting efforts 628,000 people have been lifted out of poverty as of the end of 2019, and 74 counties and districts in TAR have been lifted out of poverty. The incidence of poverty, it said, has dropped to zero, and absolute poverty has been basically eliminated. The CCTV programme disclosed that 266,000 poor people have moved from remote areas such as extremely high altitudes and high mountains and valleys to the periphery of towns and that 624 well-off villages had been constructed on the border. The CCTV reminded viewers that "General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at the Seventh Central Tibet Work Symposium: “We must work harder to consolidate the results of poverty alleviation, think of more methods, provide more follow-up assistance and support, and effectively connect with rural revitalization, especially with daily routines. Life-related transportation facilities, medical care, schooling, and social security for the elderly must be fully covered". "We believe that people living in this ancient and magical land will be better tomorrow!"

 

(Comment: With the last nine counties in the mountainous and most poor province of Guizhou announcing they had been lifted out of poverty, the CCP claimed on November 23 that China had eliminated extreme poverty from all of the 832 counties identified as poverty-stricken eight years ago at the outset of a nationwide campaign to end extreme deprivation by the end of 2020. Separately, the New York Times (November 23) referred to a report this year from former World Bank officials which said that if a uniform standard of $5.50 a day in income, or around $2,000 a year, were applied, some 373 million or about 27% of the population would be considered in poverty.  “Under these rates, poverty in China is still sizable and merits renewed efforts as well as further refinement of the country’s poverty policies, strategies and programs.”)