With the arrival of autumn, it is the season for sweet potato harvesting. In Yongfu Village, Chijiu Town of Fumin County, villagers are busy gathering in groups to dig, sort, pack, and load sweet potatoes, creating a bustling scene. "We've sold a small quantity in the market earlier this year, and the prices are great. It’s another good harvest year," said villager Xun Tianzhu, visibly pleased as he weighed a sweet potato in his hand. This joy stems from a new "contract farming" model implemented this year. Earlier, Xun Tianzhu signed an agreement with Fumin Qiangcun Property Management Co., Ltd., securing high-quality sweet potato varieties, with technical staff providing guidance from planting to market sales. Moreover, the company's guaranteed purchase prices have solidified Xun Tianzhu's confidence in growing sweet potatoes.
Chijiu Town, located in the northern part of Fumin County, features the beautiful Pudu River flowing through the town and is rich in ecological tourism resources and unique agricultural products. However, despite its favorable natural resources, many village collective economic organizations still lack clear development strategies and professional operational capabilities, leading to underutilization of resources and long-term financial constraints within collective incomes, which hinders overall rural development.
Beginning in 2024, Chijiu Town decided to explore the implementation of property management led by the village party organization in Yongfu Village after thorough discussions and drawing from advanced experiences. This initiative aims to integrate rural resources, leverage collective advantages, and stimulate intrinsic motivation, effectively enabling both collective and individual income growth. In July 2024, Fumin Qiangcun Property Management Co., Ltd. was officially established, and Li Chengyun, the secretary of Yongfu Village’s Party branch, was elected as the company chairman. As the company leader, besides creating wealth for the community, Li also needs to establish a stable mechanism for consistent income growth.
The company employs a “village CEO” system to select capable members from amongst the party for the board, as well as outstanding entrepreneurs from outside and local talents, while simultaneously establishing performance evaluations and compensation management systems. "The goal is to seize market opportunities, negotiate projects, and secure orders, allowing professionals to handle professional tasks," said manager Ren Fajun.
To ensure steady development, Chijiu Town has established a governance system featuring "party organization leadership, village participation, and market operations." Major decisions are to be reviewed by the village party committee before board discussions. The head of the village supervision committee acts as the chairman of the supervisory board, overseeing management services, production operations, and profit distribution, while also forming a party branch within the company. "By having dual participation and cross-appointment in organizational guarantees, the party organization can engage directly and deeply in the company’s daily operations, ensuring that major decisions always align with party policies and the fundamental interests of villagers," explained Li Chengyun.
In the year and a half since its establishment, the company has created four mechanisms for risk-sharing and benefits-sharing with villagers: integrating sanitation management resources by including all 71 village cleaners in management for sanitation and greenery care, enhancing the professionalism of rural living environment improvements; merging labor service resources by actively engaging with companies like Kunming Ximei Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd., resulting in over 8,000 labor outputs and an income increase of over 800,000 yuan for villagers; revitalizing idle assets by exploring the operation of unutilized parking lots and tourism reception centers; and facilitating agricultural product sales by coordinating with agricultural enterprises to guarantee the purchase of sweet potatoes, boosting income for over 205 households by more than 2.5 million yuan.
“Through the company’s recommendations, I participated in skills training and learned various skills like pruning, picking, and packaging, allowing me to earn 4,100 yuan each month,” said villager Qiu Jinliu, busy working in a greenhouse at Kunming Ximei Agricultural Technology Co., Ltd. Coming from a poverty-alleviated household, he now has stable work at the base and no longer fears falling back into poverty. "The company has shown me a path to wealth; as long as I follow the party organization, there are no rivers too wide or barriers too high to cross," he added.
Wang Qinglong, secretary of the Chijiu Town Party Committee, remarked that leading with the party organization ensures the company stays politically oriented while maximizing the benefits for the community. Over the past year, the company has achieved a revenue of 1.167 million yuan, increased collective income by 112,000 yuan, and transformed the village's development model from isolated efforts to cooperative progress, engaging the community in industry development and sharing in the resulting benefits.