Collective model bears fruit in Hainan's Zhaoshu

Liang Feng remembers a time when Zhaoshu Island was little more than barren landscapes with blowing sand and shrubbery. Twenty-five years later, he oversees a collective economy that generated more than 3.06 million yuan ($452,000) in revenue by May — a milestone for one of China's most remote island communities.

Liang, 47, serves as Party branch secretary of Zhaoshu community, part of the Qilianyu Islands chain administered by Sansha city, Hainan province.

In June 2024, the community secured the province's first urban collective shareholding corporation license, formalizing what officials describe as a "shared resources, shared risks, shared benefits" framework.

What began as a single supermarket and shell-craft workshop has grown to include a fishing collective, a specialty fruit processing operation, a cultural creative product store and a guesthouse. All are owned and operated collectively by the island's 161 registered shareholders. "We started with nothing," Liang said. "Now our people have real income."

The community has so far held five dividend distributions, paying out nearly 690,000 yuan to local fishermen and their families. They have transformed the bounty of the South China Sea into a key to prosperity, moving from individual efforts to collective development.

Veteran fisherman Xie Shengqing, in his 50s, said the change has been dramatic and that he has used his dividend payments to buy a new refrigerator and television. "We're not just surviving anymore," he said. "We're building a life."

The collective model emerged out of necessity. Fishermen used to struggle with high storage costs and unreliable buyers, and the local workforce was fragmented.

The turning point came when the Qilianyu work committee embedded Party branches across five industry chains: supermarkets, homestays, restaurants, fish sales and the shell craft workshop. Party members took on unpaid management roles during their off-hours, studying business operations and scouting markets.

"We couldn't afford to hire outsiders," said Wu Peng, director of the Qilianyu work committee's Party and mass office.

"So our cadres did everything — stock shelves, cook meals, keep the books. That commitment brought everyone together."

On weekends, the island's market fair draws visitors from neighboring atolls, offering locally grown passion fruit, acerola cherries and dried noni fruit — a signature product that now sells up to 50 boxes monthly.

"Our noni fruit grows huge in this heat," said Wu Xinyu, a fisherman's wife who helps run the drying operation. "We slice it, sun-dry it, and it becomes this golden, chewy snack. Tourists love it."

The fruit is processed entirely by local women, who also craft seashells into souvenir lamps and refrigerator magnets at the community's fisherman workshop.

On busy afternoons, a dozen women gather around worktables, transforming beach-combed shells into painted dragonflies and turtles.

"I can make 10 to 20 pieces in an afternoon," said Deng Fangruo, a resident who joined the craft program. "It's fun, it's creative, and it adds to our dividend pool."

The community supermarket, restocked bimonthly with 400 to 500 boxes of supplies, generates 70,000 to 80,000 yuan in monthly revenue, providing a stable foundation for the broader collective.

"The Party branch sends out a message when supplies arrive, and everyone pitches in to unload," said fisherman Zhan Daxing. "This island runs on shared effort."

Since recording the collective economy's first transaction, Liang has maintained a bookkeeping system. At the start of each month, the company posts the previous month's income and expenditure details on the community bulletin board.

As the summer noni harvest peaks, Liang is already planning next steps: expanding the guesthouse, introducing new craft lines and exploring eco-tourism packages.

"We've proven the model," he said. "Now we scale it — for our shareholders, for our children and for everyone who calls this island home. We are determined to write a new chapter of high-quality development for the island's collective economy and improve livelihoods for our people."