On the morning of May 22, amidst a heavy downpour, the road in Yantou Village, Andi Town, Wucheng District was dotted with numerous umbrellas, unfurled like blossoming flowers. A group of visitors, who had traveled from afar, strolled along, marveling at the sight before them. They couldn't help but express their admiration, saying, “This Chinese village is truly beautiful. We would love to spend a few days here.”

On that day, visitors from nearly 30 countries, including Ghana, Morocco, Madagascar, and Malawi, visited Yantou Village to see its infrastructure construction, ecological environment protection, intangible cultural heritage preservation, and grassroots democratic autonomy.

“The rural revitalization in China has something truly remarkable that is worth learning from, and that is the establishment of distinctive pillar industries,” shared Collins Mtika, founder of the Centre for Investigative Journalism in Malawi (CIJM), after visiting unique intangible cultural heritage industries such as the Wuzhou Tie Dye Workshop of Yantou Village. He believes that the Chinese government’s approach of promoting rural revitalization through the fusion of culture and tourism is highly valuable and serves as an excellent reference for other countries.

During the visit, the guests listened to Chen Qiuping, Party branch secretary of Yantou Village, introduced the village’s development journey. In 2014, Yantou Village underwent significant changes, demolishing old brick and tile structures as well as a pigsty, creating a cleared area spanning 1,652 square meters. This marked the beginning of a concerted effort to revitalize the village, including comprehensive management of the Meixi River Basin, overall environmental improvements in Andi, and the expansion of the Xianyuan Lake tourist resort. Yantou Village has seen impressive development in its cultural and tourism sectors, uplifting its residents on the path to prosperity.

“The Chinese government’s efforts to seek the happiness of ordinary citizens at the grassroots level are deserving of admiration,” said Moctar Adamou, dean of the Faculty of Law and Political Science at Parakou University in Benin. He highlighted that the development of a single village reflects the incredibly bright prospects of China’s path to modernization. He expressed his desire to learn, observe, and contemplate more in China, with the intention of bringing back valuable Chinese wisdom on rural revitalization and shared prosperity. (By Ji Junlei)