The city view seen from Nanshan Park in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, November 10, 2023. /Xinhua
Editor's note: Fu Zhiwen, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, is an associate professor at Guizhou Minzu University Law School. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.
Nov. 15, 2023 -- China's State Council Information Office on November 10 released a white paper entitled "CPC Policies on the Governance of Xizang in the New Era: Approach and Achievements." The white paper spells out the historic achievements made in the Xizang Autonomous Region in the fields of economy, culture, society, ecology, democracy and rule of law since the 18th Communist Party of China (CPC) National Congress, showing the great success of the Party's strategy for governing Xizang in the new era.
We have noted that the Xizang Autonomous Region has made great progress in education and employment over the past 10 years, providing strong support for Xizang to achieve a comprehensive victory in poverty alleviation and a well-rounded well-off life.
The Xizang Autonomous Region has an average altitude of more than 4,000 meters above sea level, which is vast but sparely populated, with a population density of 3 people per square kilometer and a more scattered distribution of agricultural and pastoral population. The inconvenient transportation makes it difficult to run schools. Historically backward basic education used to make a high proportion of illiterate farmers and herdsmen.
In the 10 years since the 18th CPC National Congress, the state has invested a total of 251.51 billion yuan ($34.5 billion) in education in Xizang, consolidating the teaching conditions for preschool, primary, secondary and higher education, and improving the level of running schools. The Xizang Autonomous Region's basic education has been further developed and consolidated, and all indicators are the same as the national level, with some indicators exceeding the national average, such as the compulsory education consolidation rate exceeding the national level by 2 percentage points, reaching 97.73 percent. The number of people with university education per 100,000 people in Xizang doubled from 5,507 in 2010 to 11,019 in 2020, and the average number of years of education per new labor force increased to 13.1 years.
Students practice the "Xieqin," a traditional local dance, on the playground at the Baingoin County Sinopec Primary School in downtown Baingoin County, Nagqu, Southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, October 13, 2023. /Xinhua
The development of education has significantly improved the quality of the population of all ethnic groups in Xizang, increased the possibility of employment, and provided a foundation for the people to integrate into the modern industry and improve their skills from traditional animal husbandry.
Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the state has supported and introduced modern agriculture, industry, and tertiary industries that can adapt to and develop the characteristics of the Xizang Autonomous Region through policies such as industrial poverty alleviation and employment poverty alleviation, thus effectively promoting local economic development and labor force employment. Under the overall arrangement of the CPC Central Committee, China has carried out coordinated development, industrial cooperation and aid to Xizang in provinces and municipalities and China's state-owned enterprises.
At the same time, in recent years, state-owned enterprises and 17 provinces have also provided targeted jobs, adding tens of thousands of jobs for Xizang college graduates to choose from in and outside the region every year. Hence, the employment rate of Xizang college graduates has remained stable at more than 95 percent.
With the care of the Party and the state, and with the help of fraternal provinces and China's state-owned enterprises, the Xizang Autonomous Region has greatly improved the quality of education at all levels and in all types of education, greatly improving the quality of the school-age population of all ethnic groups, and laying a solid foundation for high-quality and full employment. The high-quality employment of young people has provided sufficient income for their families, accelerated the integration of people of all ethnic groups into the modern economic system, balanced the level of regional development, promoted exchanges and integration of people of all ethnic groups, and laid a solid foundation for social stability.
Xizang is a microcosm of the development of China's ethnic minority areas. The Chinese government has invested a large amount of funds, manpower, and material resources in ethnic minority areas to improve the educational conditions, enhance the quality of the population, develop various industries, promote high-quality and full employment, increase their incomes, and actively promote the realization of common prosperity in all regions and ethnic groups. Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, Chinese people of all ethnic groups are striving together to create a society of common prosperity and unite for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.