Prosperous lives

The Party's people-centered approach is also reflected in its commitment to improving living standards and promoting equality. Last year, China accomplished its goal of eliminating extreme poverty and entered a new development stage.

The Harvard survey said Chinese citizens reported that the government's provision of healthcare, welfare and other essential public services was by 2016 far better and more equitable than when the survey began in 2003. People in poorer and inland regions were more likely to report increases in satisfaction, resulting from the provision of basic services.

The life of Peng Xiaying, 53, a resident of Shenshan, a village located in the mountains of Jinggangshan, Jiangxi province, has improved dramatically in the past few years under poverty relief policies.

The village had poor infrastructure, and the villagers walked on dirt roads and lived in adobe houses. Women from outside the village were discouraged from marrying Shenshan men to avoid a life of poverty.

Peng's household used to be one of the poorest in the village, and the family mainly relied on her to earn a meager income from farming due to her husband's disability.

In 2015, the local government arranged targeted poverty relief projects in Shenshan and helped villagers develop tea and yellow peach industries. They also built a parking lot, installed streetlights and helped the villagers renovate their houses.

With the help of the government, development of the tourism industry and more visitors, Peng opened the first homestay in the village with her husband in 2016.The guests eat at the homestay and often buy handmade bamboo baskets and chopsticks, which help the family earn about 110,000 yuan ($17,200) a year.

"Now every household has its own business. Some make snacks, some sell handicrafts and local products. With the government's support and our own hard work, I believe the future will be more beautiful," she said.