Fighting for the poverty: a case study for human migration in the context of sustainable dryland farming development in the Southern Ningxia Hilly Area

The Southern Ningxia Hilly Area is one of the most impoverished areas of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region (a province) of China due to an economy that mainly relies on agriculture, which is affected by droughts in two out of every three years. Government programs have attempted to develop an increased and sustainable level of scientifically based agricultural production while restoring the environment. However, since the population exceeds the capacity of the land to adequately support it, a program is underway to move 350000 people to more suitable locations. This paper outlines the past improve- ments to the Southern Ningxia Hilly Area and considers future development in the context of migration for ecological reasons.