"With these three wells drilled by China, the problem of water shortage during the dry season has finally been solved!" Zhang Lanying, a villager from Guanta Village, Mae Salong District, Chiang Rai Province, Thailand, spoke with relief in her voice.

On the afternoon of August 9, 2025, the school playground in Manggang Village, Meisile Township, was bustling with excitement. The local government held a handover ceremony for the three wells donated by China. When clear water gushed out from the ground, many villagers specially came to witness this moment - for this mountain village that rarely hosts large-scale events, this was a truly joyous occasion.

Zhang Lanying's Guanta Village has more than 150 households. The village has long faced the problem of drinking water shortage, especially in recent years when the demand for water has surged with the improvement of living standards. These three new wells undoubtedly meet an urgent need.

Nestled amidst the towering mountains and rugged terrain at an altitude of over 1,000 meters, Mae Salong Township is a significant settlement of Chinese descent in northern Thailand. Constrained by geographical and climatic conditions, the scarcity of water resources has long plagued local life and production, causing considerable inconvenience to villagers' daily routines and further hindering regional economic development.

"When I was a child and attended school in Mae Salong, the surrounding mountain villages lacked a stable water source," recalls Zeng Zhengxian, former president of the Xinghua School Alumni Association in Chiang Rai Province. With population growth and village development, accessing drinking water became a major issue, and even some schools had to rely on water trucks to transport water from outside.

Upon learning of the water supply dilemma in Mae Salong, the Chinese Consulate General in Chiang Mai, in collaboration with the Beijing Pinglan Charity Foundation and two Chinese-funded enterprises in Thailand, jointly initiated a well-digging and water diversion assistance project. One well was dug in each of Mae Salong's First Village, Manggang Village, and Guanta Village. Once these three wells are put into use, they will solve the drinking water problem for over 1,000 local households.

"The well water is particularly clear, and the villagers no longer have to worry about water," said Yang Meiyu, the village chief of Guanta Village. In the past, they relied on collecting rainwater during rainy seasons, and had to spend money to buy water during droughts. Nowadays, every household has a water tank, and filling it with water from the well can basically meet the needs of a household for a week.

Picha, the head of Mae Hong Son County, believes that the joint donation of wells by the Chinese Consulate General in Chiang Mai and Chinese-funded enterprises will not only provide clean drinking water for villagers in northern Thailand, but also inject new impetus into local economic development. Editor/Wang Xia