Students of Wanquan Primary School in Metog play during recess. Photo: “ACADEMICS ACROSS BORDERLAND” REPORTING TEAM

Metog was the last county in China to gain highway access, and to date remains the only one that follows a traffic rule of “entering on even dates and exiting on odd dates.” On Oct. 12, CSST journalists departed from Bomi County early in the morning and, by noon, arrived at Metog’s busiest commercial street.

One road, a county transformed

Metog is home primarily to the Monba and Lhoba ethnic groups. The three- and four-story buildings along its streets display wooden carved window lattices, colorful eaves, and prayer-flag motifs, illustrating the region’s distinctive architectural style. Within the county seat, restaurants, chain supermarkets, and boutique hotels line the streets, with familiar brands readily visible. At lunchtime, tour buses and independent travelers in private cars park along the roadside, bearing license plates from Beijing, Sichuan, Guangdong, Zhejiang, and beyond—all corners of China.

Inside a small Shaanxi noodle restaurant, the owner reflected that without the new road—and the livelihood it made possible—she would never have followed her son and daughter-in-law to this once-remote place. Pointing toward the street outside and the nearby Lotus Holy Land Park, she explained that both were entirely new additions. In the 2011 footage shot by CSST, the same stretch appeared as marshland dotted with only a handful of humble eateries and grocery stalls.

Metog’s first true road connection arrived in 2013. In 2016, aided by the seventh aid-Xizang team from south China’s Guangdong Province, the Lotus Holy Land Park opened as a landscaped public space paired with a lively shopping street. Over the past five years, a full commercial district has sprung up around it, drawing branded hotels and a steady flow of visitors. In 2024, the county welcomed 605,500 tourist visits; during the 2025 National Day holiday, daily arrivals exceeded 8,600—a striking number for a county with only about 15,000 residents.

But the greatest beneficiaries of all have been local residents. Many still recall the now-famous tale of Metog’s first car, which entered via a makeshift dirt road in 1993 only to be trapped indefinitely by a landslide. Two decades passed before the Galongla Tunnel finally gave Metog a stable link to the outside world. Even then, it was only in the past five years that residents truly began to enjoy the conveniences of motor travel. In December 2019, the Metog County Bus Station officially opened its doors.

According to Sonam Wangchuk, director of the county transport bureau, the station’s inaugural route connected only the county seat with Dexing and Beibeng townships. Inter-county service to Nyingchi followed in April 2020. As demand increased, the station expanded its routes and fleet. Plans are already in place to add more buses and drivers in 2026.

Old treasures fuel new economy

Improved transportation has breathed new life into Metog’s distinctive local crafts and products. The first to capture attention was the Metog stone pot. At the Metog Monba-Lhoba Intangible Cultural Heritage Museum, CSST journalists watched artisans carve the pots from a unique grayish-white soapstone found along the cliffs of the Yarlung Tsangpo River. Locals call it “soft stone” for its workable texture, which artisans shape into cylindrical pots of different sizes used for cooking, steaming, and storage.

Rich in trace minerals, the pots draw out the natural flavors of dishes. One standout local delicacy—stone pot chicken—pairs the pot with Tibetan fragrant chicken, a free-range breed noted for its firm yet tender meat. At the Guoguotang Farmhouse in Dexing Village, owner Tsewang Gyatso said that dishes such as “Monba-Lhoba Stone Pot Chicken” and “Stir-Fried Pork Skin with White Chili” have consistently been top visitor favorites. “Especially the stone pot chicken—it’s a must-order dish and always receives rave reviews,” he added.

Yang Jie, an associate research fellow from the Institute of Economic Strategy at the Tibetan Academy of Social Sciences, told CSST that an entire industrial chain built around stone pot chicken—extending from craftsmanship to poultry breeding—has taken shape. This chain has woven Metog into the national market and offered villagers a tangible pathway toward prosperity.

Meanwhile, Metog has elevated its traditional farming model into an eco-agritourism economy blending agriculture with tourism. Dexing Village vividly illustrates this shift. When CSST reporters visited in 2011, villagers had just begun using solar power and expanding banana planting. Revisiting in 2025 with Dexing Township Party Secretary Li Zhen, the reporting team encountered a landscape transformed: Rows of traditional two-story Monba-style homes line the main road, each with a courtyard brimming with oranges, loquats, bananas, passion fruit, and other fruits. A tourist from central China’s Henan Province, marveling at a farmer’s lush courtyard, exclaimed: “I never expected to see so many rare fruits growing in Xizang.”

Designated as a Chinese ethnic characteristic village in 2019, Dexing now enjoys clean drinking water, stable internet, and reliable electricity throughout. Its integrated model of “culture-tourism + agriculture + specialty breeding” has powered its growth. Across Metog, 43 villages follow similar paths. In 2024, the county’s GDP climbed to 1.011 billion yuan (approximately $143 million), and rural residents’ per capita disposable income reached 24,935 yuan—surpassing the national average. To guard against a return to poverty, Metog has also introduced 20 targeted support measures. Wei Houkai, a Member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) and former director general of the Rural Development Institute at CASS, emphasized that sustained industrial development and strong internal momentum are essential to preventing large-scale relapse into poverty.

Inclusive education

“I love it here. The school sits right next to the Yarlung Tsangpo River—look at that stunning view,” said Tan Anya, a volunteer teacher from the School of Mathematics at Foshan University in Guangdong, gazing at the newly built campus of Beibeng Township Primary School and the scenery beyond. “Metog has everything we need. Having the chance to share this experience with this land is truly special. Volunteering here was the best decision I made in college.” Her words echo the sentiments of many volunteer teachers.

As Metog’s fortunes rise, its most pressing need is talent. Alongside attracting skilled newcomers, the county is committed to educating its own talent. Metog now has one middle school, nine primary schools, and 30 kindergartens. According to Wu Chengzhi, deputy director of the county education bureau, most children receive free textbooks, uniforms, meals, and nutritional supplements thanks to strong policy guarantees. No student has dropped out—enrollment stands at 100%.

This robust educational security stems from solid policy and financial support. Policy documents such as the 14th Five-Year Plan for education in Xizang outline key tasks, including increased investment in education and strengthened student assistance systems.

In 2011, the Social Sciences in China Press under CASS established a CSST Metog Scholarship, which has to date funded 80 local students from primary school to university, including eight students from Beibeng Township Primary School. When reporters visited the school in 2025, they found newly built teaching buildings, dormitories, and a football field facing the mountains. “Thanks to government support, most children no longer rely on social assistance to attend school,” said Party Secretary Li Ying.

Inside the classrooms, CSST journalists saw desks and chairs neatly arranged, and air conditioners and multimedia teaching equipment fully installed. “Our students are able to attend the same online classes as children in big cities,” said Vice Principal Penpa Dorji as he tapped the screen to demonstrate the system.

A chronicle of human endeavor

As much as Metog owes its transformation to the determination of the Monba and Lhoba peoples, who endured decades without road access, it would have been impossible without the steady support that flowed in from across China. Since the third Xizang aid team arrived in 2002, 11 groups of cadres have taken up posts in the county, embodying the central government’s long-standing “paired-assistance” commitment.

Beyond paired assistance, the county has also become a place where many newcomers choose to start businesses. A lyric from the song “Love in Metog” captures that devotion: “One cannot walk two paths at once, and I have chosen this small road of Metog.” Chen Lixin, a village official in Xirang Village, said the line resonates deeply with those who have come to feel rooted here. After leaving the military, he chose to remain in Metog and has now lived here for 15 years.

Li Zhen arrived through the civil service examination. His initial impression of the county in 2008 could be summed up in four words: “severe shortage of supplies.” His first journey from Bomi to Metog took two full days. Over the past 17 years, he has witnessed how Metog’s isolation has given way to swift development, and how national policies have been translated into fuller wallets and more stable, comfortable lives for local residents. The sense of growing alongside his “second hometown,” he said, is one of his proudest experiences.

Stories like theirs—of people turning a once-distant place into a true home—are now common in Metog. Alongside civil servants, veterans, and aid-program workers, many entrepreneurs who first arrived after the road opened have chosen to stay. The county’s permanent population has grown from about 11,700 in 2013 to more than 15,300 in 2024—an increase roughly equivalent to adding 20 villages in just over a decade.

By connecting hearts through roads, building cohesion through industry, fostering spirit through education, and remaining firmly people-centered in its governance, Metog offers a vivid example of how the CPC’s strategy for governing Xizang in the new era has translated from institutional logic to genuine public affirmation. No longer a far-off “secluded island on the plateau,” Metog has become a border town that is both reachable and flourishing.