The Cyberspace Administration of China recently announced the list of the top 10 poverty alleviation cases that utilized the Internet. China plans to lift all its rural population living under the current poverty line out of poverty and also all impoverished counties by 2020. By then, today's poverty-stricken population will have enough food and clothing, and access to compulsory education, basic healthcare and housing.

This urgent task is becoming more difficult now given that most of the remaining poor population live in remote areas with inclement natural conditions and weak economic resources. Against this backdrop, the authorities naming the top 10 poverty alleviation cases using the Internet will help to meet the target.

The Internet has a very important role in China's fight against poverty. In October 2016, the Central Government issued documents for the use of the Internet by encouraging and guiding Internet-related businesses like e-commerce platforms. It asked Internet organizations to get involved in poverty alleviation work so that more rural populations could sell their products through the Internet and more children get quality education through distant learning.

In this way, consumers are also helping rural areas to get rid of poverty by purchasing products online. Impoverished populations are no longer passively accepting handouts but are creating wealth for themselves through the use of the Internet.

(This is an edited excerpt of an article originally published in Beijing Youth Daily on October 14)