Grassroots governance extends reach to win trust, address widespread issues

In 2023, 34-year-old Ma Jun moved his family of six from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in the far northwest of China to the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region in the southwest to open a halal noodle shop.

However, his greatest concern was not his new business, but the fact that his daughter was unable to attend the local school for compulsory education.

When all his attempts to remedy the situation failed, he did not expect that the Panlong community in Nanning, the capital of Guangxi, where his family lives, would solve this problem within just two weeks.

This success challenges the stereotype that a community or residents' committee, the most grassroots government organization in China, only handles trivial neighborhood matters.

Panlong has a permanent population of 30,000, one-third of whom are from ethnic minority groups such as the Zhuang, Yao and Miao. Many of them have come from other places in China to work or start businesses.

The community has addressed significant issues for those living and working there, such as mediating loan disputes and organizing free consultations with lawyers and psychologists.

In December 2023, President Xi Jinping visited Panlong during an inspection tour of Guangxi, engaging warmly with local residents.

Xi emphasized that communities are the basic units of grassroots self-governance and the foundation of the country's governance system. He added that through the community platform, addressing people's livelihood issues and public affairs while actively responding to public concerns is a significant advantage of grassroots governance with Chinese characteristics.

Xi also stressed that building interconnected communities is an important way to promote exchanges and interactions among people of different ethnic groups, noting that solid grassroots community construction, effective community services, and diverse activities would foster a strong sense of unity among all ethnic groups.