Aljazeera reports on an aspect of China, and its speedy growth, which we rarely read about in the West:
"Think of China and the first thing that springs to mind is probably not potatoes.
But in the rugged north-western province of Gansu, potatoes have been a staple crop for centuries.
Like many farmers in this arid region, 43-year-old Jia Xiaowen, his wife Chen Xiulan, her elderly father and their three children rely on their potato crop to get by.
By the standards of China's estimated 700 million peasants, the Jia family live a relatively comfortable life. They have a warm home, food on the table, and – for the time being at least – they are all in good health.
But like hundreds of millions of others, they are concerned about just how long it will last and whether, in the headlong rush for development, the rest of China will just leave them behind.
"I think China will strongly embrace economical reform if promises made by its president go ahead"
In a good year Jia says his family can make about RMB10,000 ($1,330) - about average for rural families in this part of what is China's poorest province.
"We used to worry about whether we would have enough to eat, where our next meal would come from," Jia says as he harvests potatoes – some as big as grapefruits – from his fields.
"Now we worry about whether we'll be able to afford to keep our children in school."
This year though, things are a little bit harder. An ongoing drought that has struck much of northern China meant the family's summer wheat harvest failed.
With luck, Jia reckons his potato crop will bring the family about RMB6,000.
To put that in perspective, nationwide the average GDP per capita – not per family - is just over RMB16,000. In China's boomtown of Shanghai, that figure rises to more than RMB55,000.
This fast-growing divide between China's rich cities and its poor countryside is one of the biggest challenges facing the ruling Communist party as it meets in Beijing to map out the country's future and the party's continued hold on power."
"Think of China and the first thing that springs to mind is probably not potatoes.
But in the rugged north-western province of Gansu, potatoes have been a staple crop for centuries.
Like many farmers in this arid region, 43-year-old Jia Xiaowen, his wife Chen Xiulan, her elderly father and their three children rely on their potato crop to get by.
By the standards of China's estimated 700 million peasants, the Jia family live a relatively comfortable life. They have a warm home, food on the table, and – for the time being at least – they are all in good health.
But like hundreds of millions of others, they are concerned about just how long it will last and whether, in the headlong rush for development, the rest of China will just leave them behind.
"I think China will strongly embrace economical reform if promises made by its president go ahead"
In a good year Jia says his family can make about RMB10,000 ($1,330) - about average for rural families in this part of what is China's poorest province.
"We used to worry about whether we would have enough to eat, where our next meal would come from," Jia says as he harvests potatoes – some as big as grapefruits – from his fields.
"Now we worry about whether we'll be able to afford to keep our children in school."
This year though, things are a little bit harder. An ongoing drought that has struck much of northern China meant the family's summer wheat harvest failed.
With luck, Jia reckons his potato crop will bring the family about RMB6,000.
To put that in perspective, nationwide the average GDP per capita – not per family - is just over RMB16,000. In China's boomtown of Shanghai, that figure rises to more than RMB55,000.
This fast-growing divide between China's rich cities and its poor countryside is one of the biggest challenges facing the ruling Communist party as it meets in Beijing to map out the country's future and the party's continued hold on power."
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