In 10 years, 1.4 million kilometers of roads were built in the countryside

China’s State Council has published a white paper outlining building connections in rural areas. Between 2013 and 2023, an increase of 21.7% in paved routes was recorded. Another card that Beijing plays in cooperation with developing countries that are part of the Belt and Road Initiative.

Beijing () – Not only large, futuristic bridges and highways around large metropolises, but also thousands of kilometers of rural roads. These are the results that China boasts of in a white paper on the construction of infrastructure in rural areas that was presented today. It is stated here that the total length of roads in the country reached 4.6 million kilometers by the end of 2023, with an increase of 21.7% in the last ten years. Since 2014, more than 1.4 million kilometers of rural roads have been built or improved in the People’s Republic. All cities and towns where conditions permitted are now accessible by paved roads, and a bus service connecting them was established between 2019 and 2020, says the report titled “China’s rural roads in the new era” published by the Information Office of the State Council, China’s supreme administrative body.

“Improved transportation has removed obstacles that had long delayed the economic and social development of poor areas, and laid a solid foundation to enable populations to achieve a certain prosperity from all points of view,” says the propaganda of the Chinese Communist Party. The document argues that infrastructure development has attracted capital and talent to the countryside, creating more employment opportunities. According to the data provided, the construction projects employ about 80,000 people, which would allow the annual per capita income to increase to about 8,500 yuan (about $1,180). Another 850,000 workers have been hired for highway management and maintenance with an average annual income of around 13,000 yuan (less than $1,800). The construction of roads is also part of the government’s plans to modernize remote areas and develop tourism by taking advantage of the characteristic resources of the countryside.

The white paper also highlights that China is trying to pass on this experience in cooperation with developing countries. The construction of the Surabaya-Madura bridge in Indonesia and the Maputo-Katembe bridge project in Mozambique are mentioned. In the transport sector, cooperation has been possible thanks to the fact that China has created new exchange platforms. For example, Beijing has created the Global Sustainable Transport Innovation and Knowledge Center to promote exchanges “with the international community” – he explains – “on the development of rural roads.”

Since 2018, China has also organized 28 training sessions, including a program “on road design and management in Botswana” and courses “on highway engineering for countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative” such as Cambodia, Serbia, Rwanda, Namibia, Vanuatu and Niger.