A composite of industry and government social investment has transformed what was once the poorest fringe of Jiangsu province's Zhangjiagang city into a hypermodern, manicured and clinically clean "model" settlement.

It's a place where residents, including migrant workers, enjoy a living standard unfathomable to most Chinese farmers. The urban-rural integration seen in Yonglian won Zhangjiagang nearly 100 accolades from provincial to international levels, including the UN Habitat Scroll of Honor in 2008.

The minimum annual welfare benefits are more than $8,000 a person - far more than the 24,600 yuan ($3,900) average for migrants. Such welfare, among other benefits, also extends to the migrants from 23 provinces that make up about half of Yonglian's population. Also, 5,000 of Yonggang Steel Co's more than 13,000 employees are local. About a third of Yonglian's income respectively comes from the Yonggang Steel Co cooperative agriculture and land leases. The village owns about a quarter of Yonggang's stock.

Address: Yonglian Village, Nanfeng Town, Zhangjiagang

Phone: 400 1600 800

Opening time: 08:00-17:00

Self-driving tour: Shanghai-Jiangyin Highway → Phonix Exit → National Highway 204 → Yonggang Avenue → Yonglian Village

Buses: No 202 & No 220