On Feb 23, production machines at the Mingchen Lighting Factory in Juancheng county, Shandong province, ran smoothly in an orderly manner, with workers diligently carrying out their respective duties in the processing workshop.

Inside the workshops in Shiji town, delicate "crystal balls" of lighting products gradually took shape on the assembly lines, as workers skillfully operated the machines. Outside, trucks waited to load the lighting products, ready to send them to various parts of the country and for export overseas.

Watching the busy scenes, general manager Ma Minchen was extremely happy with the factory's operation.

Back in 2018, Ma quit his job in Shanghai and answered the local government's call to start a business in his home village of Wudian, which had backward infrastructure and economic development as a remote village back then. At that time, most of the villagers made a living by farming while young people often ventured out for work, leaving the elderly and children back at home.

Ma was well aware that in order to make changes in the village, it was vital to seek industrial development, and in 2021, he was elected as secretary of the Party branch at Wudian administrative village.

Ma, along with his colleagues at the village's leading bodies, made a plan to develop the village, and through unremitting efforts, the previously muddy dirt road was transformed into a spacious cement road, while the environmental sanitation largely improved.

While the village's living conditions gradually improved, Ma began thinking about how he could help villagers become prosperous and achieve rural vitalization.

"As I saw, industry is the foundation of rural development, the idea of planning a lighting factory in the village resurfaced in my mind," Wu recalled.

In September 2022, the workshop of the lighting factory was officially completed, and three months later, more than 30 devices were fully assembled and put into production.

"The opening of the factory not only created 26 jobs for villagers, but also brought tangible income for them," Ma said, noting that it is a hope to illuminate the villagers' path to prosperity.

The smooth operation of the factory not only allowed villagers to find jobs right at their doorsteps, but also attracted young people working outside to return to their hometowns for work, and worker Wu Changkun was one of them.

"I am from a nearby village and used to work in another city, and when I heard that the village has a factory, I returned to my hometown for work," Wu said, noting that he can earn more than 200 yuan ($28.1) a day, which is no less than what he earned outside.

"The key is that I am close to my home, taking care of my family and earning money at the same time," he said with a smile.

The development of the factory not only changed the appearance of Wudian, but also provided valuable experiences for more rural areas, Ma said, noting that with the steady growth of the lighting factory, the local villagers can usher in a better life.

Juancheng, which administers two sub-districts and 15 towns with a total population of over 923,000, witnessed its regional GDP reach some 31 billion yuan ($4.36 billion) in 2024, a 6.5 percent year-on-year increase.