A farmer sells his goji berries in a market in Zhongning County, Ningxia (XINHUA)

Its bright red color and health benefits as a medicinal herb and food supplement have been well known across China for more than 2,000 years.

Found predominantly in northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, the goji berry (also called wolfberry) is now even more popular than in the past, as increasing numbers of Chinese become more conscious about what they consume and favor nutritious diets. As the goji berry industry flourishes, more tourists are visiting Ningxia and treating themselves to the berries as well as buying them as gifts for friends and family members.

"In addition to goji berries being a favorite gift purchase, we also invite tourists [to Ningxia] to visit the area where the berries are grown and understand the culture behind the plant. In this context, we came up with the idea of building a goji manor," said Hao Xiangfeng, President of Bairuiyuan Gouqi Corp., a leading company in the goji berry industry in China.

As a subsidiary of Bairuiyuan, the manor is a leisure resort that revolves around the theme of goji berries, integrating tourism, leisure experience and special goji food and drinks with the aim of providing tourists with a bespoke experiential service.

"The fast development of railway is playing an increasingly important role when it comes to promoting our goji products and attracting tourists," said Hao, adding that he is now looking forward to the completion of four high-speed railways that will connect Ningxia with surrounding areas.

The four high-speed railways - Wuzhong-Zhongwei Intercity Railway, Yinchuan (Ningxia)-Xi'an (Shaanxi Province) High-Speed Railway, Zhongwei (Ningxia)-Lanzhou (Gansu Province) High-Speed Railway and Baotou (Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region)-Yinchuan High-Speed Railway - that run through Ningxia are now under construction and will be completed between 2019 and 2022.

"After the completion of the high-speed railways, more and more tourists are expected to visit our manor, which will undoubtedly drive the development of Bairuiyuan and other enterprises in the region," Hao told ChinAfrica.

A freight train from Xining of Qinghai Province to the Port of Antwerp of Belgium. Goji berry of Ningxia is transported to Europe on the train (XINHUA)

Development engine

Before 1995, there was only one railway, Baotou-Lanzhou Railway, that ran through Ningxia. In contrast to the rapid development of China's eastern and central areas, the northwestern region was slow in deve­loping railway services.

In 1995, Baoji (Shaanxi)-Zhongwei Railway came into service, passing through Guyuan City and Zhongwei City in Ningxia. With development driven by the railway, Ningxia has attracted more investment. The passenger and cargo transportation capacity has increased exponentially and local people's lives have improved. At the heart of much of this development is the goji berry industry, undoubtedly an important economic driver of Ningxia.

"In Ningxia, goji berry is locally called 'longevity fruit' or 'rich fruit.' This is because farmers can increase their income and get rich by growing goji berry," said Hao.

At the Second Goji Berry Industry Expo held in Zhongwei on June 26, Xu Qinglin, Director General of the Ningxia Forestry and Grassland Administration, said that Ningxia is the main goji growing area in China, and its planting area had reached 1 million mu (66,667 hectares), or 33 percent of China's total, by the end of 2018. The comprehensive output value reached 13 billion yuan ($1.83 billion), helping more than 600,000 farmers increase their income.

"Thanks to the great transportation capacity of railway, our goji berries can reach many domestic and overseas cities," Hao said.

According to him, Bairuiyuan's goji berries have been exported to 18 countries and regions. "We hope to take advantage of the benefits of the Belt and Road Initiative and the extraordinary development opportunities provided by the convenient rail transport," he noted.

There are many companies like Bairuiyuan in the region, whose rapid development has become an outstanding model in the economic growth of Ningxia. Behind these companies, the positive role of the railway is self-evident.

According to data from the Ningxia Bureau of Statistics, by the end of 2018, the length of railways in operation in Ningxia reached 1,059.9 km, which was 2.94 times that of 1978. Since 2000, these railways have transported more than 85 million passengers and 570 million tons of goods.

Soaring tourism

Ningxia's unique natural and cultural landscapes have also brought visitors more novel and unique tourism experiences. Tasting local wine and experiencing local customs are all attractions that draw both domestic and overseas visitors. At the heart of this growth in the number of visitors is the railway development, providing a convenient and comfortable transportation option.

The Sand Lake is one of the first top-rated scenic spots in China, which covers 22 square km of desert and a lake of 45 square km. This unique blend of water and desert offers visitors a unique scenic landscape including lake, sand dunes, mountains, fish, birds and reeds.

"In our tourism industry, there is a popular saying that 'tourism plus convenient transportation means success.' Indeed, it's important for us to have convenient transportation so that more tourists will choose to come here," Wang Xiaoting, Marketing Manager of Ningxia Shahu Tourism Co., Ltd., which operates the Sand Lake scenic spot, told ChinAfrica.

Compared with other means of transportation, railway is relatively stable in price, punctual and safe, which can effectively enhance visitor experience. Therefore, railway tourism is increasingly favored by tourists.

"The development of the railway has enabled more people to travel to Ningxia, which is very helpful to the growth of our company, and will definitely lend strong support to Ningxia's tourism industry," said Wang.

On September 4, the Fourth China-Arab States Tour Operators Conference was held in Yinchuan, Ningxia. The promotion of local tourism development by means of railway was one of the key topics for discussion at the conference. According to the conference, Ningxia has now put in operation a series of international special trains per week during the tourist season from May to October, which greatly facilitates the tourism exchange between Ningxia and the countries along the Belt and Road routes.

According to the Department of Culture and Tourism of Ningxia, in 2018, the autonomous region received 33.447 million domestic and international tourists, achieving a total tourism income of 29.6 billion yuan ($4.16 billion).

"With the opening of high-speed railways in the future, more tourists will prefer railway as an efficient and convenient way to travel, which will usher in a new era of railway tourism in Ningxia," said Wang.

Fast train optimism

As an important part of the national railway network planning, the construction of the fourth high-speed railway in Ningxia, the Baotou-Yinchuan High-Speed Railway (Ningxia section), was officially started in August 2018. The 100.6-km-long railway section in Ningxia connects many tourism resorts in the region, such as Helan Mountain, Sand Lake and Huize Lake. After completion in 2022, the train will run at a speed of 250 km per hour.

Ningxia people are full of expectations for the railway. "After this high-speed railway is completed, the trip from Yinchuan City to Beijing will be shortened from 16 hours to just five hours, which is really convenient," said Wang.

(Comments to likzh@chinafrica.cn)