As the drought in southwest China continues, millions of people are being thrown back into poverty. Chongqing Municipality, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and the provinces of Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan are all eyeing huge economic losses as a result of the drought.

He Daofeng, deputy executive president of the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation, released a report on May 20 on the damages and losses incurred from the drought. According to the report, more than 2.18 million people are back in poverty (poverty in China means one’s annual per capita income is below 1,196 yuan or US$ 175).

The report also states that economic losses have reached 35 billion yuan (US$5.13 billion) and about 58 million people have been affected by the drought.

The Tianshengba Reservoir in Yunnan Province, which has a total storage capacity of 1.23 million cubic meters, had completely dried up in March. Since then, the more than 4,000 mu (about 267 hectares) of farmland downstream have switched to growing water-saving crops.

He said the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation, along with Sina and CCTV, launched the program “Ganlin Action” in March to help the poor. As of May 19, the program had raised about 200 million yuan (US$29.3 million).