China using crowdfunding for restoration of the Great Wall

A government supervised foundation has set up the crowdfunding page. So far, 40,839 Yuan has been raised to help restore the Great Wall of China. It is the first time the country has used the initiative to help raise funds China has turned to crowdfunding to pay for the restoration of the Great Wall, which has suffered from the effects of weather - and locals stealing bricks.

A donation campaign, set up by a government supervised charitable foundation, is hoping to raise 23million Yuan (£2.59million) for the project.

The money will be used to restore just 1,050m (3,445ft) of the 13,170 mile long monument. The China Foundation for Cultural Heritage Conservation (CFCHC) set up the crowdfunding page on August 29 and the campaign will run until December 1.

It is said to be the first time fundraising has been used for the preservation of a heritage site. According to the blurb on the donations page, the Great Wall is slowly disappearing. The effects of weather has caused erosion in the structure and the collapse of part of the wall.

Bricks from the wall have also been stolen by people living in the area for building work or sold as souvenirs.

There are even portions of the wall that are now submerged under water. 

The CFCHC, which operates under the supervision of the Chinese State Administration of Cultural Heritage, is hoping to use the funds raised to target the Xifengkou area of the wall.

It's located in an area just east of Beijing, in the north east province of Hebei.

So far, more than 32,000 people have donated to the initiative and raised a total of 640,839 Yuan (£72,156). 

Dong Yaohui, a Great wall expert who's in charge of the crowdfunding campaign, told state news agency Xinhua that the work is expected to start in the spring of 2017.

He said: 'The project will mainly reinforce the wall to ensure the safety of the section, rather than try to build a new wall.' 

The CFCHC has a target of 11million Yuan (£1.24million) for the first part of the project - a section that's 460m (1,509ft) long. 

It's not the first time that a country has used crowdfunding to help preserve its heritage sites.

Earlier this year, MailOnline Travel reported that Italy was calling for sponsors to help restore and protect 100 of its monuments.

The total for the 100 different projects comes to more than €248 million (£188 million).

It follows the restoration of several monuments through donated funds in the country, including the Trevi Fountain and the Rialto Bridge.