Capacity Building Project for the Dongguachong Village Cooperative

Building upon the achievements of the modern rammed earth dwellings initiative launched in Dongguachong Village since 2021, this project progresses from addressing residents' housing needs to enhancing livelihood prospects. Collaborating with the Sichuan Haihui Poverty Alleviation Service Center, the Fund hopes to introduce external resources to the village, promoting sustainable rural development alongside eco-friendly construction. The initiative seeks to bolster household incomes and foster long-term village prosperity.

Location：Dongguachong Village, Ningyuan County, Yongzhou City, Hunan

Partner(s)：

Project objectives

Project Strategy

The project aims to empower Dongguachong Village to enhance its industrial technology and innovation capabilities, standardize its management, and ultimately enable the profitable entry of local agricultural products into the market, including:

1.Facilitating the enhancement of core business through the provision of industrial technology support to boost quality and efficiency.

2.Enhancing the internal governance and management capabilities of the cooperative through capacity building and financial support.

3.Improving the value chain and enhancing the added value of agricultural products in the process of market linkage by providing market connection support.

Progress

In 2024, Haihui led the cooperative's core members in six external visits for learning and four training sessions. As a result, the cooperative members have gained a solid understanding of mugwort planting and basic processing techniques. They also consulted with experts to explore sales strategies, laying a strong foundation for the development of the mugwort industry.

The cooperative has gradually established its internal governance and organizational structure, actively promoting the standardization of various management systems. Over the past year, the cooperative has encouraged local villagers to cultivate a total of 22 acres of Qiai (mugwort). In addition to processing and selling products like mugwort sticks and herbal bath packages both online and offline, the members have proactively partnered with buyers to diversify their sales channels.

The cooperative not only provides income opportunities for some farmers through mugwort cultivation and processing but also initiates charitable activities to give back to the village, showing care for the elderly residents. In October, cooperative members delivered mooncakes and pillows to the elderly in the village; in November, they organized a charity dining event, providing meals and mugwort herbal bath experiences for 35 seniors.

As the mugwort industry opens new possibilities for village development, cooperative members continue to explore and refine their practices. Moving forward, they aim to enhance the quality and yield of mugwort, improve deep processing techniques, strengthen internal governance, build their brand, and optimize the industry value chain, further expanding the influence of the mugwort industry and benefiting more villagers.

Project and United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

Projects	UN Sustainable Development Goals	SDG Targets	Overarching Efforts
Capacity Building Project for the Dongguachong Village Cooperative	No Poverty End poverty in all its forms everywhere	1.4 By 2030, ensure that all men and women, in particular the poor and the vulnerable, have equal rights to economic resources, as well as access to basic services, ownership and control over land and other forms of property, inheritance, natural resources, appropriate new technology and financial services, including microfinance	Empower cooperative members through training and mentorship to facilitate the growth of the cooperative.
	Decent Work and Economic Growth Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all	8.5 By 2030, achieve full and productive employment and decent work for all women and men, including for young people and persons with disabilities, and equal pay for work of equal value 8.6 By 2020, substantially reduce the proportion of youth not in employment, education or training	Provide industrial technology, funding, and market linkages support to the cooperative.