"Home-based services, however, supplement our work as it can benefit more aged people and provide targeted and sustainable care," Duan said.

Since the program opened its doors in 2017, it has worked with local governments in provinces of Yunnan, Guizhou and Shaanxi, and selected 53 local volunteers who have provided services to 2,652 left-behind elderly in 19 towns.

"Selected social workers all grew up in villages they serve, enjoying a good reputation, which contributes to smooth communication between the two sides," Zhong said.

"To make the work sustainable, we pay volunteers a competitive salary after discussing it with local authorities," she added.

The program had raised more than 4.7 million yuan at the end of last year through online charity platform Tencent Charity, which is mainly used for the salaries of volunteers, gifts for the aged, and funds for holding activities.

China is home to about 240 million people aged 60 or above, and the proportion of rural left-behind elderly has been rising with younger family members working in cities.

The country issued a document last year to require better social care for left-behind elderly people in rural areas. China had more than 144,600 nursing institutions as of September 2017, three times that at the end of 2017, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

"Home-based elderly service is a multi-win measure which can supplement the government policy, help youth care the aged at home, provide job opportunities in the village and provide company for the lonely elderly to enrich their lives," Zhong Tiehua said.

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