On August 24, the Information Office of the State Council held a press conference at which the role of transport in helping eliminate poverty and building a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way was introduced. At the conference, Dong Zhiyi, Deputy Administrator of CAAC, introduced the role of civil aviation in these two aspects.

Mr. Dong said that the civil aviation industry gave play to its unique advantages in helping eliminate poverty and in building a moderately prosperous society in an all-round way. As of 2020, there had been 241 certified transport airports nationwide, an increase of 58 from that of 2012. Nearly 50% of the newly established ones were located in poverty elimination areas and 82.6% of the population living in those areas had access to aviation services. As of 2020, the air routes across the country had reached 5 581, an increase of 3 124 or 120% from that of 2012. At present, at least one flight in poverty elimination areas every day that connects to regional hub airports is ensured, which connects to international hub airports through one transfer at most. As of 2020, 380 million passengers had enjoyed air travel in China, and more and more residents living in third and fourth-tier cities have access to air travel. The passenger throughput of airports in poverty elimination areas increased from about 28 million in 2012 to 78 million in 2019, an increase of more than 170%. The air transport has covered 92% of China's prefecture-level areas, 88% of the population and 93% of the economy. From the above data, the traffic in remote areas has been improved through the industry development, especially in Xinjiang, Qinghai and Inner Mongolia where an airport or an air route will reduce travel time between local and provincial capital cities by 4-18 hours. The investment environment in remote areas were optimized to greatly increase the income of local residents, provide more opportunities for the region development, and make poverty alleviation products available for more customers, thus resulting in more direct benefits to poverty-stricken areas.