KUNMING — More than 800,000 people have been lifted out of poverty thanks to rural tourism in Southwest China's Yunnan province, local authorities said on Dec 4.

According to the provincial department of culture and tourism, over 1.1 billion visits were made to the province during the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020), generating more than 850 billion yuan (about $130 billion) in revenue.

In 2019 alone, Yunnan received 360 million tourists in the rural tourism sector, accounting for 45 percent of the province's total tourists. It also generated 230 billion yuan in rural tourism revenue, accounting for over one-fifth of the province's total tourism revenue.

It is estimated that Yunnan has received about 240 million tourists this year, recovering to 66.7 percent of last year's figure. Rural tourism revenue over the period reached about 120 billion yuan, helping 57,500 people out of poverty.

"Rural tourism has become a major driver of Yunnan's tourism and economic recovery," said Zeng Yan, head of the department.