Baiyin，a city in Northwest China's Gansu Province．has for years been using a pragmatic and painstaking approach to safeguard the rights and benefits of local women and children．
　　"Women and children，an integral part of human resources，play an important role in accelerating social and economic development．"said KouMin，deputy director of the Baiyin Municipal Working Committee on Children and Women，and the Baiyin Municipal Women，s Federation．
　　Three years ago，the State Council promulgated the Programme for the Development Of Chinese Women (2oo1-1o)and National Programme of Action for Child Development in China (2oo1-1o)．
　　In accordance with the two programmes，Gansu Province and Baiyin have both created plans and explicitly defined the objectives and measures for the development of women and children．
　　"It is by no means an easy job，improving the outlook for women and children．It is challenging and arduous and requires enthusiasm．love and patience,"Kou said．

Community effort
　　Almost a11 Of the management Committee of the Yinguanglu community in Baiyin are women.
　　They play the roles Of mediators，cleaners and security staff．And their commitment is widely acknowledged．
　　To remit tuition for the children with only one parent，the committee submits reports to local education bureaux every year．
　　They also endeavour to help the laid-Off women workers find employment．
　　Besides persuading local firms to employ these women，the committee also tries to create jobs through various means such as establishing a female house-keeper service centre．
　　An aid centre was set up to mobilize the public to make donations for the 33 disabled women in the community．
　　Li Xiangyu，who had a limb amputated because of illness，had 1ost her confidence．
　　But with the assistance Of the community's women officials，Li became the owner of a phone booth which was exempt from rent and some other charges．
　　She regained her happiness and confidence．On behalf of disabled Chinese，she has attended several international culture exchanges．
　　"I will live on my own and never give up hope!"Li said．
　　Wang Yueqin，secretary of the community's management committee，said："Though the work seems trivial，it is no less significant．It(getting people back into the workforce)can produce huge Social effects so we should deal with the process very carefully．"
　　A women and children's healthcare station has been built in the city's Baiyin District．
　　Each weekend during the year，the station has been sending six employees to conduct physical Check-ups among the rural Women in five villages．
　　In the first quarter of 2004，a total of 200 women enjoyed the service．which only attracts a minimal fee．
　　To date，it has issued medical cards for discounts for more than 600 laid-off women．
　　At the same time．the station reinforces the healthcare management of pregnant women and children under the age of 3．

Care for children
　　"Children are the future and hope of a nation，"said Baiyin Library Deputy Director Chen Yinfang．
　　"The essence of a child's development comes through an early education，which improves their qualities both mentally and physically．"
　　Baiyin Library is making unremitting efforts to attract more children and help them develop good reading habits．
　　The library has established long-term partnerships with 1ocal primary schools．
　　Every Tuesday and Thursday,nearly 300 primary students have free access to the library's books．
　　It also holds regular reading forums and recitation competitions for the small readers．
　　To facilitate the parents who accompany their children,the library creatively places some"Mum's Seats，"helping to turn the area into a paradise for family reading．
　　In addition to providing self-study rooms for students who are preparing for exams，the library has a digital reading room．
　　To strengthen its ties with communities and readers,the library offers free books regularly for every community and provides a book delivery service．
　　It is also committed to fulfilling a social education role．
　　The library has been holding exhibitions jointly with related government departments and organizations to enhance children's awareness of laws in a bid to prevent juvenile delinquency．
　　The No 3 Primary School of Baiyin is another good example of children's development being fostered．
　　The school has compiled safety knowledge，a textbook which is currently used by all of the primary schools in Baiyin City．
　　It is also devoted to improving the children through various means，such as assisting them to grow crops and write diaries．
　　In addition，the school authority puts great emphasis on co-operation with parents．
　　It has established a parent school．which regularly gathers parents together who study familu education information and the laws that protect minors．
　　The parent school also encourages its members to participate in the school's mamagement．
　　Regular communication and exchanges Via the Internet are also a part of the parent school's curriculum．
　　According to Principal ZhangKegong，the primary school has 49 women teachers and 7o faculties．

More achievements
　　With joint efforts between the local Working committee and the municipal women's federation．Considerable progress in promoting the social status and living conditions of women and children has been achieved．
　　First，women's participation in public affairs has increased dramatically．
　　Now，the city has 12,58o female offcials-32.8 per cent of the total．
　　The educational level of local women and children is increasing．
　　As much as 65 per cent of the women in rural areas have been educated．
　　And almost all of the children who are of school age are able to study.with the drop-out rate less than 1per cent．
　　Women's labour rights and interests are also being better protected．
　　The local government stresses that women and men should enjoy equal pay for equal work as well as equal opportunity in terms of employment，promotion，housing，pay and welfare．
　　Moreover，relevant policies have been laid out to open up more employment opportunities for Women.
　　With the completion and upgrading of the local healthcare network，the city's women and children now．enjoy a preferable health status and living conditions．
　　The city authority has also established special organizations to safeguard the legal rights and interests for women and children．They provide legal consultancy and assistance for local women and children．
　　Baiyin is one of the cradles of China's non-ferrous metalindustry. Although its name literally means"silver,"it is known as the city of copper.
　　The State's development programme for women covers six sectors: women and the economy，women in decision．making and management，the education of women，women and health，women and the law．and women and the environment．
　　And the programme for children covers children and health．children and education，children and legal protection，and children and the environment.
（By Bai Qingfeng）

CHINA DAILY 2004.7.30