Farmers learn to operate drones at Lishui Vocational and Technical College. [Photo/WeChat account:wxlishui]

Lishui is increasing farmers' incomes through diversified approaches, including developing quality agriculture, collective village development, and skills training.

By the first three quarters of 2025, the per capita disposable income of farmers in Lishui had reached 26,491 yuan ($3745.06), marking a 6.2 percent increase, maintaining the highest growth rate in Zhejiang province.

The city is boosting agricultural value by modernizing traditional industries. For instance, the edible mushroom sector, an 800-year-old local practice, now utilizes digital controls in facilities like photovoltaic greenhouses in Qingyuan county, ensuring year-round production and stable prices.

This industry has generated a full industrial chain output value of 11.5 billion yuan from January to October, benefiting 74,000 mushroom farmers.

Furthermore, Lishui is promoting its high-quality agricultural products globally via e-commerce and leveraging its overseas Chinese connections, successfully exporting products like Qingtian waxberries to Spain and Jinyun water bamboo to Singapore.

To boost rural development, the city promotes collective business models. By pooling village resources such as land and forests into jointly operated entities, these collectives achieve unified management and economies of scale.

In the first three quarters of this year, such entities across Lishui held total assets exceeding 8.2 billion yuan and generated profits of 350 million yuan.

Skills training provides another crucial pathway. The city has launched a novel training program where farmers choose courses based on their needs, such as agricultural drone operation, with the government covering all costs.

This initiative has enabled over 16,000 people to acquire certifications. Additionally, the city has established 1,065 common prosperity workshops, helping over 77,000 residents — including 14,000 from low-income groups — secure local jobs and increase their average monthly income by 2,850 yuan.