In 2018, photographer Chen Jie and his team carried out an investigation of poor families in Xinjiang, Gansu, Guizhou and Sichuan for nearly 4 months. Visited over 100 families by travelling of more than 20 villages in 7 cities or counties and reported on the current situation of poor families in some areas.

The report was first released by The Beijing News and Tencent and then forwarded through major domestic media. Each report has achieved a very good dissemination effect, problems were solved and promoted after the report. The following are links and comments for some of the reports:

1、Leaving from Dingxi From Tencent

Updated: May 25, 2018

2、 Leaving from the Yellow Land, He Takes the Family to Xinjiang for A New Life From Tencent

Updated:May 25, 2018

3、The Beijing News, May 27, A8/9

Witness Leaving from Dingxi, 2 pages

4、Not One Less: To Live, Crossing 3000 km to Settle in Xinjiang From Sina

Updated: June 5, 2018

Reporting impact: high-level attention earned, process of poverty alleviation promoted.


The above report has attracted the attention of the Secretary of Gansu Provincial Party Committee. As the local high-level officials were not clear about poverty and harsh natural conditions described in the report, therefore it provided them as an information access.

According to the feedback from Dingxi Propaganda Department, as the report caught the attention of local high-level officials, poverty alleviation in poor mountainous areas in Dingxi has been further strengthened, many neglected families are now included in terms of targeted poverty alleviation. At the same time, more policies have been provided to poor families that immigrating to Xinjiang, such as residence registration, school transfer and transportation subsidies for immigrant families during the transitional period, and timely training and arrangement for immigrant work after settling down.

5、Dilapidated Houses Preventing Collapse by Wooden Sticks in A Poverty Alleviation and Relocation Village in Dingxi, Gansu Province From Tencent

Updated: August 9, 2018
A Dilapidated House Preventing Collapse by Wooden Sticks in A Poverty Alleviation and Relocation Village in Dingxi, Gansu Province

6、The Beijing News, December 22, A8/9,

Witness The Rebirth of Poverty Alleviation Dilapidated Houses in Dingxi, 2 pages.

7、Reconstruction of Dingxi Poverty Alleviation Dilapidated Houses Nearly Completed with an Investment Estimate of least 5.2 Million From Tencent

Updated: December 22, 2018

8、The Beijing News, December 22, A8/9,

Witness The Rebirth of Poverty Alleviation Dilapidated Houses in Dingxi, 2 pages.Reporting impact: 37 officials held accountable; 5.2 million invested to demolish, rebuild and repair dilapidated buildings.

After reported from the Beijing News and other media, the State Council and the Gansu Provincial Party Committee issued instructions one after another. And an investigation was carried out by The National Development and Reform Commission. Investigation teams from provincial level to all functional departments and all city & district level are engaged in the investigation, 37 officials were held accountable, among which 2 departmental level officials and 12 county level officials. And 3 were transferred to judicial authority. 

At the same time, a comprehensive investigation was carried out on dilapidated buildings, among which 9 were identified as D-class dilapidated buildings and 17 as B-class and C-class dilapidated buildings. The assessment requires demolition and reconstruction of the 9 D-class dilapidated buildings and reinforcement of the 17 B-class and C-class dilapidated buildings. 


As of January 2019, a total of 5.2 million has been invested, 9 D-class dilapidated buildings have been demolished and rebuilt, and 17 B-class and C-class dilapidated buildings have been partially repaired. The whole project is expected to be completed and accepted in May this year, and villagers can move into safe houses in June. 


At the same time, A housing safety check was carried out in all relocation villages under the jurisdiction of Dingxi, and many problems were found, now the relocation villages with problems are undergoing various rectification and an accountability mechanism will be launched.

9、Moving from Mountain Area to New Houses in City, A Mother of Child Once Ran Away from Home because of Poverty From Tencent

Updated: October 18, 2018

10、Left-behind Children Moving from Cowshed to New Houses, Are They Really Out of Poverty ? From Tencent

Updated: December 29, 2018

11、The Beijing News, December 30, A8/9

Witness New Home for Left-behind Children, 2 pages.

12、Not One Less: New Home for Left-behind Children in Bijie From Sina

Updated: January 14, 201

(26 pictures, 3000 words)

Reporting impact: strengthen the protection of left-behind children and promote the “Home Returning” work for 240,000 left-behind children. 


A series of reports on left-behind children have attracted the attention of the state and Guizhou Provincial Committee.


According to feedback from the local government, at present, schooling problems of left-behind children from 20 poor families have been solved after relocation. And the arrangement of their parents’ work in the local town has been pushed forward. Now most of the parents are arranged by government to work locally, ending children from left-behind.

Government of Bijie announced that the safety and mental health of left-behind children will be further strengthened this year, and arrangement of their parents’ work will be pushed forward to let the 240,000 left-behind children returning their homes.

13、Youngsters’ Leaving Makes Them the Last Opponents of Time From Tencent

Updated: January 11, 2019

14，Subsidy Increases Tenfold in 8 Years for Border Guard in Xinjiang From Tencent

Updated: June 27, 2018

By releasing some videos and short stories of poor families online, Chen Jie and his team have also attracted social attention and promoted some changes:


Tirila Cheriga, 68, the hostess of a poor family in Yarkant County, suffers from cataract and her family is in trouble. After the interview was released, Beijing Tongren Hospital has contacted her and voluntarily provided her a free surgery. 


The left-behind children from 16 poor families reported in Bijie, Guizhou were all given one-on-one assistance. 


According to reports from Dingxi, Gansu Province, the local government has visited Zhang Wenqing and other three elderly families many times since the report was released. The situation has been investigated and the demands of the three elderly people and their families have been solved one by one. 


Major portal websites such as People’s Daily, Legal Daily, China Pictorial, China Photography Daily and CCTV have adopted the above-mentioned poverty alleviation reports. Among them, CCTV, with Chen Jie as its main line, recorded the story of Chen Jie’s investigation on left-behind children of poor families in Bijie, Guizhou, and broadcast it on various channels during the Spring Festival this year. The broadcast time is as follows:


”Our Festival -2019 Spring Festival” Premieres: CCTV-10 February 5 (New Year’s Day) 21: 26; Replay: CCTV-1 February 7, 00:18, CCTV-10 February 7, 13:26, CCTV-10 February 9, 10:39. (The program lasts for 80 minutes in total, among which the interview of Chen Jie is from 55th to 63rd minutes) 


In 2019, Chen Jie and his team will, on one hand, continue to track the changes of some poor families investigated in 2018, and on the other hand, they will go deeper into the poorest areas in China, such as Liangshan, southern Xinjiang, the Loess Plateau and the Yellow River basin. They will keep reporting typical stories through written records, pictures and video shooting, which will attract the attention of government and society and strongly drive for a change.

15，We have moved to the new house in the city, Mom, please come home soon

16，Relocating the left-behind children: from bullpen and thatched cottage to 100-square-meter houses