political integration, (tiao tiao (条条)) is used in order to link governmental instances vertically to higher instances at the center. In that manner, the higher scales pass down the central policy. The lower scales, such as localities, enjoy self-governing rights and are free to develop their own strategies to achieve poverty alleviation. Horizontal political integration (kuai kuai (块块)) is used to include various governmental sectors. Cross-system leading groups exist which consist of the leaders of all relevant departments such as the ones in charge of party affairs, finance, education, transportation, the armed police as well as the discipline inspection commission. Pairing-up The nationwide classification of “poor” households is achieved through a national registration system which enables local officials to collect data from each individual person, household and village. Each household that has been designated as poor, is assigned a cadre who serves as a personal advisor in the household's poverty alleviation. Once considered poor, households have a “targeted support contact card” (精准帮扶联系卡 ) hung on their doors, which records the name of their cadre and the amount of subsidies the household is receiving. Monitoring and Evaluation A profound system of monitoring and evaluation contributes to the effectiveness of the targeted poverty alleviation campaign. Cadres are obliged to follow due process and report each step of implementation of poverty alleviation action. While good performance is rewarded with promotions and bonuses, bad performance is sanctioned with salary cuts, reduction in the bonus and refusals of promotions. Evaluation is carried out as a two-way-mechanism as cadres from higher scales control lower scales and the other way around. The individual households also assess the performance of their personal cadres. This motivates the cadres to lift their assigned households over the poverty line. The role of the villages Background information on village-level poverty alleviation: “Building a new socialist countryside” The divide of living standards between coastal provinces and the interior regions as well as the divide between cities and the countryside grew massively since the mid-1990s. The nationwide implementation of the Targeted Poverty Alleviation Campaign and its accompanying measures for rapid poverty reduction, has led to considerable changes in village structures. Two main political goals are apparent: (1) new (adapted) governance structures enhance the overall effectiveness of the set of measures and (2) enable the party-state to reclaim lost ground in the villages. The latter must be considered in the light of the manifold reforms