In 1916, the Salvation Army spread into Beijing, China. Early missionary work was concentrated in the northern region, and the following mission stations were opened: Tianjin (1918), Baoding (1918), Dingxian (1918), Jinan (1918), Datong (1918), Suiyuan Fengzhen (1918), Taiyuan (1922), Shijiazhuang (1932), Qingdao (1934), with the headquarters located at the Central Church in Wangfujing in Beijing, and a church hospital was opened in Dingxian in 1918. An officers' training institute was built, and a church hospital opened in Dingxian in 1932. after the 1930s it expanded southward to Hong Kong (1930), Guangzhou (1932), Shanghai (1932), and Nanjing (1935).
The Salvation Army was involved in the emergency relief and development work after the earthquake in Gengma, Yunnan Province in 1988, and formally established The Salvation Army's China Division in 1993, which was under The Salvation Army's Hong Kong and Macau Military Region.
In 1996, the Southwest Program Office was established in Kunming, Yunnan Province. With the aim of helping the poor and developing the local economy; a series of disaster relief, poverty alleviation and development projects were carried out with the support of foreign governments, The Salvation Army overseas and the local government in China.
In October 2001, the North/Northeast China Project Office was established in Beijing. It has now carried out a number of poverty alleviation, disaster relief, school support and comprehensive development projects in North China.
The Salvation Army's work in China is divided into four main areas:
Basic construction: water supply, electricity supply, construction of sanitary latrines, etc.
Education: rebuilding/construction of school buildings, purchase of additional teaching facilities, organization of girls' classes, literacy classes, teachers' training courses, etc.
Agriculture and production: agricultural or vocational training, income-generating loans, and provision of seedlings, livestock, and other material support, etc.
Health care: rebuilding/construction of rural clinics and hospitals, provision of medical equipment and medicines, training of medical and nursing staff, and promotion of community health education.