Bank project to promote development of Chinese rural areas

Beijing. Jul 19. Silkroadnews - Housing and streets will be reconstructed in the city of Danxia located at the foot of the Danxia Mountain in Guizhou Province, as the local government is working to turn the city into a resort tourist complex by 2021, China Daily reports.
The mountain, known for its Huguo Buddhist temple, whose history dates back to the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), was described in the travel diaries of Xu Xiake, a distinguished travel writer and geographer who is regarded as China’s Marco Polo.
The local government is making great efforts to move the city from low-profit traditional farming, such as growing corn, to a developed service sector by developing tourism with the help of commercial banks.
95 rural families in the city of Danxia, who received government recommendations based on their credit information, received assistance from the Agricultural Bank of China. Each family received a three-year loan of 80,000 yuan ($11,970) without security at a loan rate of 6.18% to restore or expand their homes, some of which they can use to develop their business.
The local authorities will repay the interest on loans for these 95 families during the first two years and return 20% of the principal amount, or 16,000 yuan, to each family after it has paid the loan. To cover potential risks, the government also established a risk compensation fund of 20 million yuan in case of default on loans.
Since the end of 2014, the Agricultural Bank of China has extended loans of more than 10 billion yuan in Guizhou to support a project to improve rural areas, including upgrading roads, electricity and living conditions.