Critically examining China's Targeted Poverty Alleviation campaign, this book challenges the dominant narrative of a complete victory over poverty. Drawing on extensive fieldwork across multiple provinces, it examines how the Chinese state conceptualizes and acts upon poverty as a technical, de-politicized issue, often through disruptive interventions such as mass resettlement.
Drawing attention to the uncertain and enduring consequences of campaign-style governance, the book provides fresh insights into Chinese politics, development and political geography. It offers a different way of thinking about poor people and poor places in China, essential for researchers focused on poverty management and state power.