VIENTIANE, March 7 (Xinhua) -- China's efforts in the past few years to reduce poverty across the country have contributed a great amount to the global endeavor to fight poverty and promote sustainable development, a China expert in Laos has said.

In a recent interview with Xinhua, Sithixay Xayavong, director of the China Studies Center of the National University of Laos (NUOL), noted that the Communist Party of China and the Chinese government have a clear goal regarding poverty reduction.

Official statistics show that over the past five years, China has lifted 68.53 million people out of poverty. China has vowed to eliminate poverty by 2020.

"It is a great contribution to the poverty reduction goal and sustainable development target of the United Nations," said Sithixay.

He praised China's practice of sending officials to rural areas to identify each household's financial and health problems.

"It is possible to see and solve the problems of each family, such as some families are lacking money to invest, some families are lacking technical skills or professional knowledge, and some families are in remote areas with no infrastructure," he said.

Support and assistance are given to the poor families based on their specific needs or growth potential so that they are able to create better lives for themselves, the expert noted.

"Some villages are suitable for tourism, so tourism is encouraged and some roads have been built in order to facilitate commercial transportation," Sithixay said.

As one of the least developed countries, Laos should learn from China's poverty-reduction experiences, he said.

The NUOL China Studies Center, established in 2015, has played an active role in promoting understanding of China in Laos.