Guilin's Longsheng Various Nationalities Autonomous County is located in the mountainous region of northeastern Guangxi. Its geographic layout of "nine parts mountain, half part water, half part farmland" determines the central role of forestry in this ethnic autonomous county. The county's total forest land area is approximately 3.01 million mu, with a forest coverage rate as high as 83.29%. About 53% of the forest land falls within national and autonomous-region-level ecological public welfare forests and natural forest protection areas.

Longsheng is one of the counties receiving targeted assistance from the National Forestry and Grassland Administration (NFGA). According to the 2025 targeted assistance work plan published on the NFGA's official website, Longsheng is listed alongside Luocheng in Guangxi, Dushan and Libo in Guizhou as recipient counties, making it one of the NFGA's two designated assistance counties in Guangxi.

For over 30 years, the NFGA has continuously dispatched assistance cadres to work on the front lines in Longsheng, with multiple officials having served in county leadership roles. Entering the rural revitalization phase, the assistance model has further extended to operational front lines, with additional cadres dispatched to serve as deputy directors of the county forestry bureau, participating in the entire process of technical guidance, project planning, and resource coordination. In 2021, the NFGA's Science and Technology Department specifically organized a science and technology service team to visit Longsheng, providing technical support in camellia oil planting, large lily seedling cultivation, and edible fungus base construction, facilitating the landing of a camellia oil research project by the Subtropical Forestry Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Forestry in Longsheng.

This assistance chain is now delivering tangible results. Longsheng has identified understory Chinese herbal medicine cultivation as the core direction for industrial breakthroughs. It has already developed multiple authentic medicinal herb varieties including Cibotium barometz, large-leaf lily, and Sarcandra glabra. The 36,000-mu Cibotium barometz simulated wild planting project approved by the autonomous region is progressing steadily, with over 1,000 mu already planted. Large-leaf lily cultivation exceeds 2,000 mu, creating the "Guixicai" brand. In terms of ecological management, approximately 2,850 ecological forest rangers across the county have woven a management and protection network covering all administrative villages in 10 townships, building a solid ecological foundation centered on ecological public welfare forests and natural forest protection. Relying on a full-coverage, regular patrol and control system, Longsheng has not experienced any major forest fires in the past two years, and the county's forest ecological security situation continues to remain stable and improving.

Meanwhile, Longsheng distributes approximately 23.56 million yuan annually in compensation funds to farming households for public welfare forests, natural commercial forest protection, and logging cessation. This guides the public to shift from "living off the mountains" to "protecting the mountains and prospering." The implementation of the forest chief system has incorporated forestry protection into the county and township party and government coordination systems, with forest chiefs at all levels taking the lead in coordination, breaking the previous situation of the forestry bureau working alone. Looking ahead to the "15th Five-Year Plan," Longsheng plans to seek breakthroughs in three areas: forestry technology application, industrial chain extension, and national reserve forest project construction, striving to forge a path to prosperity that creates a virtuous cycle between ecological protection and industrial income growth.

Longsheng is also a land of revolutionary heritage. In December 1934, the Central Red Army passed through Longsheng during the Long March. The Fourth Division of the Third Red Army Corps arrived at Baimian Yao Village and carved the slogan "The Red Army Absolutely Protects the Yao People" on Longshe Rock, deeply embedding revolutionary heritage in Longsheng's mountains and forests. How can a balance between protection and development be achieved on top of an 83.29% forest coverage rate? How can assistance resources be precisely transformed into industrial momentum? Recently, a reporter from China Business Journal conducted an exclusive interview with Jiang Jiangtao, Director of the Forestry Bureau of Longsheng Various Nationalities Autonomous County.

Jiang Jiangtao, Director of the Forestry Bureau of Longsheng Various Nationalities Autonomous County. Photo by interviewee

Over 30 Years of Assistance Helping Policies and Technology Take Root

China Business Journal: The NFGA has been providing targeted assistance to Longsheng for over 30 years. How are assistance resources precisely deployed through the forestry bureau?

Jiang Jiangtao: For over 30 years, the NFGA has continuously dispatched assistance cadres to the front lines. Multiple assistance cadres have been assigned to county-level leadership positions, and during the rural revitalization phase, additional cadres have been dispatched to serve as deputy directors of the county forestry bureau, participating in the entire process of technical guidance, project planning, and resource coordination. The dispatched cadres have built a "fast lane" for direct communication between the NFGA and our county. Higher-level assistance policies and resources can reach the grassroots immediately, and difficulties and needs encountered at the grassroots level can be quickly reported upward. While precisely bridging the "last mile" of policy implementation, they localize national forestry and grassland policies in accordance with Longsheng's actual conditions, effectively avoiding mistakes in grassroots work.

For example, in the area of forest land protection, dispatched assistance cadres address policy points that are difficult for the grassroots to grasp, vet forest land reviews, provide policy support for key projects such as highways, hydropower, livelihood projects, tourism complexes, roads, and major tourism loop lines, assist our county in identifying policy coordination pathways, and promote the smooth implementation of various key projects. In terms of science and technology assistance, dispatched cadres leverage assistance channels to connect with special funds, participate in the entire process of project implementation and research base construction, and successfully facilitated the landing of a camellia oil research project by the Subtropical Forestry Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Forestry in Longsheng.

China Business Journal: What is the scale and overall plan for Longsheng's understory economy?

Jiang Jiangtao: Longsheng is rich in forest resources and suitable for understory Chinese herbal medicine cultivation. It currently has multiple authentic medicinal herb varieties including Sarcandra glabra, large-leaf lily, and Cibotium barometz. Among them, the large-leaf lily planted within the autonomous-region-level nature reserve in Jianxin Village exceeds 2,000 mu. The medicinal materials produced are of excellent quality, and the "Guixicai" large-leaf lily powder brand has been created, bringing a stable source of income to local residents. The 36,000-mu Cibotium barometz simulated wild planting project (excluding wild plants) approved by the autonomous region is progressing steadily, with over 1,000 mu already cultivated. Chinese medicinal materials such as Sarcandra glabra and Polygonatum odoratum are also being steadily expanded, gradually forming an industrial scale.

For future planning, we will follow the "15th Five-Year Plan" objectives, closely adhering to the core approach of combining ecological protection with industrial income growth, striving to achieve contiguous base and cooperative-scale understory planting area of 100,000 mu, driving more forest farmers to earn a living from the "ecological economy" and follow a green path to prosperity.

China Business Journal: What new initiatives are planned for the understory economy in 2026?

Jiang Jiangtao: In 2026, we will focus on three directions: First, sustained effort, with plans to complete approximately 10,000 mu of Cibotium barometz expansion and extend Longsheng's local Chinese herbal medicine industrial chain, promoting the upgrading of raw materials into high-value-added end products such as beverages and traditional Chinese medicine lozenges, connecting with high-end consumer markets. Second, quality improvement and empowerment, deeply cultivating the Yao bath wellness industry. While establishing our own medicinal material bases, we will also purchase local raw materials, independently process Yao bath herbal packs, and explore the development of locally suitable medicine-food homology categories such as lingzhi. Third, consolidating foundations, advancing industrial base construction, carrying out forest farm plot tending and transformation, creating forest gaps, screening suitable understory planting plots, and comprehensively planning the over 50,000 mu of usable forest land resources at Liling Forest Farm to consolidate space for large-scale understory Chinese herbal medicine development.

China Business Journal: What work has the forestry bureau done to promote the camellia oil industry?

Jiang Jiangtao: We mainly carry out work from two aspects. First, consolidating the foundation for camellia oil planting, implementing camellia oil-related subsidy policies, and executing Guangxi's camellia oil commercial forest construction plans. We strengthen technical training, carry out grafting transformation of old camellia oil forests, and improve the output efficiency of camellia oil forests. Currently, private camellia oil production and sales activity is relatively high. Farmers independently plant and press camellia oil, selling it through social channels, bringing considerable income to mountain farmers. Some elderly people rely on 1 to 2 mu of camellia oil forest and can earn about 10,000 yuan annually, effectively ensuring basic living standards. Second, strengthening technological empowerment. Leveraging NFGA assistance resources to carry out camellia oil quality improvement technological research, jointly promoting local camellia oil brand building with growers and the NFGA, connecting with investment promotion departments for external study visits, having visited Jiangxi and Hunan to learn advanced industry experience, and actively negotiating the introduction of advanced camellia oil refining and processing technology and industrial chain enterprises. However, constrained by market downturn and local objective conditions, large-scale camellia oil refineries and research institutions have not yet been established.

2,850 Ecological Forest Rangers Jointly Guard a Sea of Forests

China Business Journal: Longsheng's forest coverage rate has reached 83.29%. As the competent authority, how does the forestry bureau protect this "green asset"? What is the core protection mechanism?

Jiang Jiangtao: Longsheng's total forest land area is approximately 3.01 million mu, with about 53% classified as national and autonomous-region-level ecological public welfare forests and natural forest protection areas. To protect this green sea of forests, our county takes ecological public welfare forest and natural forest protection as the core to build a solid ecological foundation, stabilizing the 83.29% forest coverage rate. We have built a full-coverage ecological forest ranger management and protection network, implemented ecological compensation policies, and pressed management and protection responsibilities layer by layer to safeguard our green ecological assets.

China Business Journal: How many ecological forest rangers are there currently? What is their specific work? How does the forestry bureau manage and train this team?

Jiang Jiangtao: The county currently has approximately 2,850 ecological forest rangers, covering all administrative villages in 10 townships. Their basic job responsibilities include: conducting daily mountain forest patrols, forest fire prevention and control, and undertaking grassroots promotion of forestry policies. In terms of daily management and training, the county forestry bureau implements standardized and institutionalized management, signing employment contracts with all forest rangers, clarifying annual patrol responsibilities, work standards, and performance requirements, establishing and improving quantitative assessment and dynamic evaluation mechanisms, and resolutely dismissing personnel who fail to perform their duties or fail assessments, ensuring the overall combat effectiveness of the team. All forest rangers in our county are locally hired villagers who are familiar with mountain forest conditions and have a clear understanding of management and protection needs.

In addition, the county forestry bureau regularly conducts professional empowerment, organizing two full-staff centralized training sessions annually, focusing on core operations such as forest fire response and management, forest pest monitoring and prevention, and standardized timber harvesting management, while also promoting forestry policies and regulations, bridging the "last mile" of forestry policy implementation to households. The ecological forest ranger team has become an important outpost force for grassroots forestry management and protection, effectively filling the gap in front-line law enforcement and management personnel at forestry authorities.

Relying on the full-coverage, regular patrol and control system, Longsheng has not experienced any major forest fires in the past two years, and the county's forest ecological security situation continues to remain stable and improving.

China Business Journal: Beyond patrols, does this team serve other functions?

Jiang Jiangtao: The role is mainly reflected in expanding grassroots governance effectiveness. The forest ranger team has transformed from simply conducting mountain forest patrols to deeply participating in grassroots social governance. Forest rangers who remain locally, in addition to ecological protection and policy promotion work, also assist in public affairs such as social security prevention and control, mediation of mountain forest disputes, and rural environmental sanitation improvement, effectively filling the grassroots labor gap caused by young and middle-aged rural residents migrating for work, achieving the identity transformation from assistance recipients to grassroots governance participants.

We hope the national government can continue the ecological forest ranger support policies. Forest ranger positions help people find local and nearby employment. Forest ranger labor income has become a stable safety-net income for many families, and is an important tool for implementing livelihood security and stabilizing employment, truly achieving mutual benefit between ecological protection and livelihood security.

China Business Journal: Localities are currently implementing the forest chief system. As the specific organization and implementation department, how effective is this mechanism? What is the biggest challenge?

Jiang Jiangtao: After implementing the forest chief system, forestry work has been incorporated into the county and township party and government coordination systems. Forest chiefs at all levels (party and government principal leaders) take the lead in coordination, with relevant departments in culture and tourism, transportation, ecological environment, and natural resources simultaneously fulfilling forestry responsibilities. Forestry protection is made a prerequisite for project advancement, promoting the implementation of ecological civilization requirements. This has changed the previous situation of relying solely on the county forestry bureau as a single department for management and protection. Management and protection responsibilities are pressed down to grassroots party and government organizations at all levels, with obvious institutional advantages.

The biggest challenge lies in balancing ecological protection and economic development. Some business entities are eager to advance projects and begin construction before forest land approval procedures are complete, causing illegal occupation of forest land that requires corrective action. We do not prohibit reasonable development, but require standardized procedures and compliant project approval. We firmly resist high-pollution projects while actively supporting wellness tourism and livelihood projects. Going forward, we need to continuously strengthen legal education and guidance.

Most Forest Land Cannot Be Touched, Where Does the Money Come From

China Business Journal: How are compensation funds for public welfare forests and natural commercial forests distributed? What role do they play between ecological protection and public income growth?

Jiang Jiangtao: Compensation funds for public welfare forests, natural commercial forest protection, and logging cessation go directly to farming households, with approximately 23.56 million yuan distributed annually. The public can obtain stable economic returns without logging trees, which both guarantees people's production and living needs and transforms the traditional production model of living off the mountains. It guides the public to abandon the habit of cutting wood for fuel, achieving mutual benefit between ecological protection and public income growth.

China Business Journal: What key measures will the forestry bureau take in science and technology promotion in 2026?

Jiang Jiangtao: Forest land in multiple townships of Longsheng is in high-altitude, cold regions. Compared to low-altitude forest land, various tree species have longer growth cycles and more difficult tending management. Planting technology suitable for local high-altitude areas has always been a direction we urgently need to break through. In recent years, leveraging the resource advantages of NFGA targeted assistance, we have focused on promoting advanced and applicable technologies around two leading industries: camellia oil and understory Chinese herbal medicine. For the challenge of high-cold mountain land utilization, we plan to introduce high-altitude Chinese herbal medicine and camellia oil experimental planting technology, coordinating with market enterprises and professional camellia oil technical teams to carry out experimental demonstrations, exploring high-mountain planting models suitable for Longsheng's local conditions, fully tapping the potential of forest land resources, and striving to break through the development dilemma of low utilization rates and low output efficiency of high-altitude forest land.

China Business Journal: Between protection and development, what is the biggest contradiction the forestry bureau faces? How is it coordinated and handled?

Jiang Jiangtao: The core contradiction is balancing ecological protection and economic development. About 53% of the county's forest land is classified as protected areas and ecological public welfare forests. The space available for development and utilization is limited, with a large amount of forest land constrained by protected area management. To address this contradiction, our coordination approach is: first, practicing the development philosophy of "prospering without cutting trees." Without destroying forest vegetation or reducing forest coverage, we vigorously develop understory Chinese herbal medicines such as large-leaf lily, Sarcandra glabra, and Cibotium barometz, using the understory economy as the direction for breakthroughs. Second, strengthening pre-project forest land service guarantees, insisting on moving the threshold forward, proactively intervening when cultural tourism, transportation, and wellness projects have landing intentions, assessing forest land constraints in advance, providing planning and feasibility optimization suggestions to enterprises, guiding standardized project design, reducing project rework, and helping market entities advance projects within compliant boundaries, both safeguarding the ecological protection red line and reserving compliant space for reasonable industrial development.

In addition, we actively guide the public to change their development mindset. Through multiple channels such as public welfare forest compensation and ecological forest ranger positions, the public directly benefits from ecological protection, forming a virtuous cycle between ecological protection and industrial income growth.

China Business Journal: Looking ahead to the "15th Five-Year Plan," what are the core goals and directions for Longsheng's forestry development? In which areas does the forestry bureau hope to achieve breakthroughs?

Jiang Jiangtao: We will earnestly implement the ecological philosophy that "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets," adhere to the "ecological county establishment and green development" approach and the integrated development concept of "ecology, tourism, and health," continuously strengthen forest resource protection, fully safeguard Longsheng's impressive ecological foundation of 83.29% forest coverage, continue promoting the quality upgrading of forestry specialty industries, and truly transform ecological advantages into economic advantages and livelihood advantages, driving more mountain-area residents to achieve stable income growth.

Looking ahead to the "15th Five-Year Plan," we mainly hope to achieve breakthroughs in three areas: First, achieving new breakthroughs in the application of forestry science and technology, breaking through the bottleneck of developing and utilizing high-altitude forest land resources, letting research achievements truly take root in Longsheng's mountains and forests and benefit the broad community of forest farmers. Second, achieving breakthroughs in industrial chain extension, filling the processing gaps for local specialty forestry products such as camellia oil and understory Chinese herbal medicines, building up Longsheng's forestry specialty public brand, simultaneously promoting diversified understory business forms such as monk fruit, understory beekeeping, and understory lingzhi, enhancing industrial added value and market competitiveness. Third, deepening national reserve forest project construction, integrating fragmented forest land, concentrating on cultivating precious and high-quality tree species with high market recognition, further broadening the "two mountains" transformation path through national reserve forest acquisition, tending, and planting, allowing Longsheng's lucid waters and lush mountains to continuously generate greater ecological, economic, and social benefits, truly forging a path to ecological prosperity that suits Longsheng's actual conditions.