A worker carries a fish farmed at the Yellow River Economic Fish and Aquatic Germplasm Resources Field in Helan county, Ningxia Hui autonomous region. CHINA DAILY

Fujian province and the Ningxia Hui autonomous region are marking the 30th anniversary of their paired assistance program, an initiative established in 1996 that has evolved from agricultural assistance to include cooperation in industry, e-commerce, and healthcare.

Economic cooperation has created jobs and expanded digital trade infrastructure. As of September 2025, the initiative has placed 55,000 workers from Ningxia into long-term jobs in Fujian after receiving targeted training at Ningxia Sanjiang Technical School. Additionally, the Hemei Network's E-Commerce Workshop, a featured case in the 5th Global Best Poverty Reduction Case Studies, has helped create jobs for women in Ningxia and generates average annual sales of 10 million yuan ($1.47 million).

Agricultural technology cooperation has boosted local development. Juncao technology, developed by Professor Lin Zhanxi from Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, was introduced to Ningxia's Pengyang county in 1997. The technology helped lift more than 17,500 households in the Xihaigu region out of poverty over a decade. In 2022, a joint venture between Fujian universities and Ningxia enterprises successfully introduced large yellow croaker farming to saline-alkali ponds in Ningxia using simulated seawater systems. The project not only improved the utilization and economic value of saline-alkali land, but also helped restore local ecosystems, offering a new approach to saline-alkali land rehabilitation in Ningxia.

In healthcare, the First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University has sent 23 medical professionals to the People's Hospital of Yuanzhou District in Ningxia in four rotations as of 2025. The program also helped standardize 65 clinical procedures and sent 27 local medical workers to Fujian for advanced training.