Photo Gallery
A Helping Hand for China's Environment
Japanese Experts and Volunteers Help China's Environment
After decades of neglect and exploitation, a major priority for China is to rehabilitate its environment. JICA is assisting in two major projects to try to halt the advance of the desert in the north of the country and to reforest areas in the south, in the process helping to protect the lifestyles of millions of local people.
Following the flooding of the Yangtze River in 1998 when thousands of persons were killed and 223 million others were affected by the rising waters, it was decided to reforest a mountainous region around the south central city of Xichang to try to avert similar catastrophes in the future. JICA experts have been working in the region since 2000. Volunteers have also been helping in related projects to raise the standard of living of poor people, particularly the minority Yi tribe.
In China's Inner Mongolia region, an area two-thirds the size of Japan has become an environmental disaster zone as three separate deserts inexorably inch southwards and even threaten the capital of Beijing. As part of its overall global policy of working with nongovernmental organizations, JICA has funded one project which is trying to stop the spread of what an expert calls "the ugly red dragon."
Photos courtesy of Masako Imaoka / JICA
