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FM AMCONSUL CHENGDU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2401
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHINGTON DC
RUEHCN/AMCONSUL CHENGDU 2907

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CHENGDU 000058 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/CM AND DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL:  2/27/2027 
TAGS: PHUM EAID ELAB SOCI SCUL CH
SUBJECT: GUIZHOU GRASSROOTS NGOS FOCUS ON RURAL DEVELOPMENT 
 
 
CHENGDU 00000058  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: John Hill, Acting Consul General, United States 
Consulate, Chengdu. 
REASON: 1.4 (b), (d) 
 
 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  Grassroots NGOs working on rural development in 
Guizhou Province have identified education of migrant children, 
health care, and rural governance as three primary areas of 
focus.  One NGO trains teachers and volunteers who serve the 
needs of hundreds of migrant children in unregistered migrant 
schools in Guiyang, while another seeks to increase access to 
education for migrant girls.  One group and its government 
partners working in the health sector were forced to stop 
programming due to government sensitivities.  Work on increasing 
the participation of rural residents in public decision-making 
appears to be welcomed by local Guizhou authorities.  While NGO 
leaders acknowledged the sensitive climate for NGOs, they all 
felt their organizations would continue to operate successfully 
because of the immense need for social services in the 
countryside and the lack of government initiatives.  End Summary. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) During a recent reporting trip Congenoff met with two 
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) focusing on rural 
development work in Guizhou, one of China's poorest provinces. 
The Guizhou Institute of Highland Development and the Harmony 
Social Research Institute are both based in Guiyang and have 
complimentary missions that focus on education for children of 
migrant workers, health, and rural governance.  (Note:  The 
Harmony Social Research Institute is a new umbrella organization 
that includes the Guizhou Center for Rural Governance, the 
Nature Running Development Education Center and the Association 
for Youth Development Education.  End Note) In separate 
meetings, the leaders of the organizations described the 
successes and challenges of rural poverty alleviation. 
 
Education for Migrant Workers 
------------------------------ 
¶3.  (C) Education for the children of migrant workers who come 
from other parts of Guizhou is one of the principal focuses of 
the Guizhou Institute of Highland Development (GIHD), founded in 
2004 by Luo Shihong (strictly protect), a former participant in 
the Department's International Visitor Program.  Luo said 
approximately 10 percent of Guizhou's population, or 5 million 
people, migrate for work within and outside the province.  He 
estimated in Guiyang, a city of 3 million, there are 150,000 
school-age children of migrant laborers. 
 
¶4.  (C) The educational situation is precarious for migrant 
children, most of whom do not have Guiyang residence permits 
(hukou).  Luo described Xigua Village within Guiyang 
Municipality where there are 11 unregistered "private" (min ban 
xuexiao) migrant schools catering to this group of students. 
The schools are often started in farmer's homes by employers of 
migrant workers, and the teachers are migrant laborers as well, 
many with no more than two years' of high school education. 
Students are expected to pay 200 RMB (USD 24) per year in 
tuition and teachers rarely earn more than 400 RMB (USD 48) per 
month. 
GIHD assists students with scholarships and grants, trains 
migrant teachers, trains NGO volunteers to teach special classes 
(handicrafts, culture and music), and conducts fund raising for 
school projects.  The NGO also hopes to open a small clinic and 
start a health checkup system in the schools. 
 
¶5.  (C) The Nature Running Development Education Center (NRC) 
and Association for Youth Development Education, directed by 
Huang Xiaoyu (strictly protect), are taking a more 
policy-focused approach by lobbying government officials to pay 
attention to educational equality for migrant children and 
resident urban dwellers.  The groups also encourage companies to 
donate books and contribute to the construction of libraries. 
In 2007 the NRC is focusing on education for migrant girls who, 
according to Huang, have a 50 percent enrollment rate in 
Guiyang.  The NGO is building a volunteer support network team 
to encourage continuing study for girls and to address issues of 
adaptability to city life for migrants.  Huang is also working 
to encourage teachers from public schools and migrant (min ban) 
schools to work together to develop teaching materials.  In a 
separate conversation, Luo of GIHD reacted skeptically to the 
notion that teachers and administrators in the government-funded 
public school system could be enticed to cooperate with the 
informal "educators" in the migrant schools, saying they were 
already stretched far too thin. 
 
Health 
------ 
¶6.  (C) Rural health care has been a more challenging area, 
according to Luo of GIHD, due to government sensitivity over the 
issues of mine safety and health in areas brimming with 
 
CHENGDU 00000058  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
unregulated coalmines.  After receiving initial approval from 
the Guizhou Health Bureau and CDC, GIHD began to work in two 
townships of Tongzhi and Songtao counties, where 40 percent of 
the population is reported to suffer from lung diseases.  The 
plan was to carry out prevention and treatment activities and to 
cooperate with the local government to set up a health service 
center.  The NGO published a glossy and well-compiled book to 
use as educational material on health and safety in the 
villages, but after the first print run, the Guizhou government 
publishing house confiscated all the copies and refused further 
printing or distribution of the materials.  GIHD had to 
discontinue the planned work. 
 
Rural Governance 
---------------- 
¶7.  (C) Mao Gangqiang (strictly protect), Director of the Center 
for Rural Governance, said his organization seeks to increase 
the participation of rural residents in public decision-making. 
The NGO uses participatory rural assessment techniques such as 
surveys, group discussions and group decision-making to 
encourage involvement.  The work of the NGO is generally 
welcomed by local authorities, according to Mao, because the 
Center and the communities it works with facilitate solutions to 
problems that the government is unable to provide.  Mao said he 
hopes the NGO will also become a platform for capacity building 
for other grassroots NGOs in Guiyang and Zunyi. 
 
Comment 
------- 
¶8.  (C) Key to the ability of these NGOs to operate in this 
environment is their ability to find safe "political space" to 
carry out their activities:  one leader even described his plan 
to use personal political connections through the Communist 
Youth League to establish linkages between public and migrant 
schools.  While the leaders acknowledged the sensitive climate 
for NGOs, they all expressed optimism their organizations would 
continue to operate successfully due to the immense unmet need 
for social services in the countryside and the lack of 
government initiatives to meet those needs. 
HILL