Zhang Guoqiao, a member of the Communist Party of China, is a resident of Nantaiyu Village, Taiyu Township, Shunping County, Baoding City, Hebei Province.
He studied at the Shunping branch of Baoding Radio and TV University (RTVU) from 2010 to 2015, entering the Rural Administrative Management junior-college major as part of the “One College Student Per Village” programme in the spring semester of 2010. After graduation, he went on to study Administrative Management as a China Central Radio and TV University （CCRTVU）undergraduate from the autumn semester of 2012 until January 2015, when he graduated.
He now serves as deputy secretary of the Party branch of Nantaiyu Village, head of the Peach Industry Association of Taiyu Township, and a standing member of the Shunping County Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). During his RTVU studies, he won the CCRTVU’s "Field of Hope" scholarship, and was named an “excellent graduate”. In May 2010, he was named one of the “Top 10 Young Entrepreneurs of Shunping County", in July 2011 a “Model Worker of Baoding City", in April 2014 a "Model Worker of Hebei Province", and in February 2014 a "Top Baoding City Rural Talent”. In May 2014, he was was named one of the “Young Rural-development Leaders of Hebei Province" by the Hebei Provincial Committee of the Communist Youth League, the Department of Rural Work of the CPC Hebei Provincial Committee, the Hebei Provincial Department of Science and Technology, and the Hebei Provincial Department of Agriculture. In January 2015, he was named an "Excellent Meteorological Information Officer" by the China Meteorological Administration, and in May 2015 a "National Model Worker" by the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, a commendation awarded in the Great Hall of the People.
As a rural Party cadre, Comrade Zhang came to the RTVU wondering how to develop the rural economy and help the villagers become rich. He worked hard. Not only did he complete both the junior-college and undergraduate programmes with outstanding results, he has also used what he learned to help his fellow villagers toward prosperity.
Zhang Guoqiao returned home after finishing high school in 1990, and in 1995 began dealing in peaches, a major crop in the village. In 2000, the Peach Blossom Festival of Shunping County was inaugurated, and many tourists came to Taiyu Township for its 12,000 mu (800 hectares) of beautiful peach blossoms. Zhang Guoqiao saw the opportunity for an “agritainment” enterprise. In 2005, despite opposition from his family and insufficient funds, he had the "Wangrui Shanzhuang" (pistil-watching villa) and "Guanhua Tai" (flower-viewing platform) built on the mountain to take advantage of the idyllic scenery. Tourists were invited to have food fresh from the farm and outdoor barbecues, and to pick fresh fruit on their own as part of a whole new kind of tourist experience. Over several years, Wangrui Shanzhuang received investment of over 2.2 million yuan for an area covering 6,500 square meters, including floor space of over 1,800 square meters and a 3-kilometer sightseeing area covering 2,000 mu (about 133 hectares). With capacity for more than 800 people, the villa has become the focus of the festival.
“Prosperity for one is not real wealth; it is only real when all achieve it.” These are the words Zhang Guoqiao lives by.
For the festival, he encourages the local villagers to sell their products and produce from stalls, including dried vegetables, free-range eggs, sweet potatoes and so on, stimulating farmers to expand the range of their husbandry and planting. He has also provided funds for the building of farm courtyards to enhance the ability of farmers to receive visitors, and at this point numerous villagers participate in tourism for the festival. Projects to attract visitors throughout the spring, summer and fall have also been initiated.
Peach production has also been an area of focus for him. In 2007, he paid a two-month visit to Shandong, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Shijiazhuang, Wuhan and other places, and upon returning established a peach-industry association to enhance the quality of peach production in the area. With the support of the Forestry Bureau, the Science and Technology Bureau, and the county Science and Technology Association, and after more than a year of preparation, the Taiyu Peach Industry Association was established, with more than 100 growers as the first members, a unified management, and a decentralised mode of production. Members were given technical guidance, and sales were contracted to relieve the farmers of worries. A classroom was built at a cost of 125,000 yuan, and together with online bookstores at the Baoding Association for Science and Technology, computer rooms were added to assist with training. What's more, a distribution station for agricultural products was set up to put in place strict product control at the source of production, with technology to manage diseases and pests. Zhang Guoqiao is enthusiastic about solving production and management problems, with rules formulated to produce organic fruit of enhanced quality. Furthermore, he registered the trademark "Hongqiao" with the State Administration for Industry and Commerce to certify the fruit production. Member-grown peaches have begun to appear in large supermarkets, selling for three to four times as much as other fresh peaches, and the association has grown to comprise more than 1,300 units and individuals in and around the county, and cover 30,000 mu (2000 hectares) of fruit orchard.
As part of this process, Zhang Guoqiao is also taking the initiative to visit the poorest families in the area to help them deal with their production and life difficulties.
His association is also involved in the experimental station of the Fruit Tree Research Institute in Shijiazhuang, providing the site and keeping records for the Institute of Plant Protection of the Provincial Academy of Agricultural Sciences, specifically for a project using sex attractants to control the oriental fruit moth. A weather-modification center and a small meteorological observation station have been built in the villa for early warning regarding dangerous weather.
As a standing member of the Shunping County Committee of the CPPCC, he is always conscientious about his responsibilities, acknowledging the needs and desires of farmers, and receiving praise from all sides for his efforts. As a cadre, he takes an active part in the management of village affairs. He often says, "As a Party member, it is my responsibility to help guide the people toward wealth."
For all his success, he is not resting on his laurels. In the spring of 2010 he began studies at the Shunping Branch of Baoding RTVU, taking time from his work to attend face-to-face tutorials once a week and asking his teachers for help by e-mail or even telephone. His laptop and study materials accompanied him to meetings and other business, and he never missed an assignment. In group discussions, he was active in communicating with the teachers and leading his classmates. In the end, he completed both his junior-college and undergraduate programmes with outstanding results.
Comrade Zhang's diligence has been leading the villagers step by step to prosperity, and he has gained recognition from the grassroots to the top levels of government. His accomplishments have been covered by Shunping News, Baoding TV, the Baoding Evening News, the websites of Hebei and Baoding RTVUs, China Radio and TV University News, and other media. As a former RTVU student, he has added to the glory of the RTVUs and set an example for their students.
By OUC Voice WeChat Official Account