How to Break Through Low Land Management Efficiency? Agricultural Reclamation Reform Boosts Agricultural Modernization
Vice Premier Wang Yang of the State Council said in a People's Daily article on the 16th that new development concepts should be used to vigorously advance agricultural modernization and strengthen the leading role of agricultural reclamation in the modernization process. The Central Leading Group for Comprehensively Deepening Reform meeting held on October 13 reviewed and approved the document "Opinions on Further Advancing the Reform and Development of Agricultural Reclamation." The meeting proposed steadily advancing agricultural reclamation reform, with the main line being the promotion of reclamation area grouping and farm enterprise-oriented reform, relying on innovation-driven development, accelerating the transformation of the economic development model, advancing the integration of resources and assets and the optimization and upgrading of industries, and giving play to the backbone and leading role of modern agricultural construction.
At present, the agricultural reclamation system is rich in land resources, but management efficiency is relatively low, and within reclamation areas society and enterprises are not separated. Therefore, reducing the social burden of the agricultural reclamation system, revitalizing existing assets, and accelerating land transfer may become key directions for subsequent reform. Institutions believe that with strong policy support, the agricultural reclamation industry is expected to usher in opportunities for rapid development.
Data show that China's agricultural reclamation system is rich in land resources. There are 34 reclamation areas nationwide, with a total area of state-owned land of about 540 million mu, accounting for 3.7% of the country's land area. The agricultural reclamation system has 1,779 state-owned farms, 13.52 million people, more than 3,200 state-owned and state-controlled enterprises, and more than 760 billion in state-owned assets. In terms of output value, last year the total production value of the national agricultural reclamation system exceeded 650 billion yuan.
The low management efficiency of China's agricultural reclamation system has hindered the development of the agricultural industry. Among these issues, land property rights are unclear, and the land transfer market is not sound; the confirmation of rights has still not been completed, and land transfer regulations vary from place to place; enterprise operating efficiency is relatively low, and the management mechanism still needs further marketization. The loss rate of state-owned enterprises within the agricultural reclamation system reached 21.22%, far higher than the 8.20% of non-state-owned enterprises. In the indicators of gross sales margin, period expense ratio, and sales profit margin, all reflect the low operating efficiency of state-owned enterprises within the agricultural reclamation system.
In order to accelerate the reform of the agricultural reclamation system and support agricultural modernization, General Secretary Xi Jinping presided over the 17th meeting of the Central Leading Group for Comprehensively Deepening Reform on October 13, which reviewed and approved documents including the "Opinions on Further Advancing the Reform and Development of Agricultural Reclamation." The meeting pointed out that to advance the reform and development of agricultural reclamation, it is necessary to adhere to the direction of socialist market economy reform, adhere to the separation of government and enterprises and the separation of society and enterprises, take safeguarding national food security and the effective supply of important agricultural products as the core, and take the promotion of reclamation area grouping and farm enterprise-oriented reform as the main line. Relying on innovation-driven development, accelerate the transformation of the economic development model and advance the integration of resources and assets and the optimization and upgrading of industries. Build large bases, large enterprises, and large industries for modern agriculture, comprehensively enhance internal momentum, development vitality, and overall strength, and give play to the backbone and leading role of modern agricultural construction.
With the gradual implementation of subsequent supporting policies, enterprises in the agricultural reclamation system will usher in a new round of development opportunities. The increase in land value brought by large-scale management, as well as the increase in securitization rate brought by asset injection, will both raise the profitability of related enterprises.
On the corporate side, Beidahuang's business model is land contracting. Since last year it has gradually completed the divestiture of loss-making assets and is currently advancing an employee stock ownership plan. It holds 13 million mu of land resources and is the only listed platform of Heilongjiang Agricultural Reclamation. In the future it will fully benefit from the dividends of agricultural reclamation reform, and expectations for asset injection are relatively strong. Yasheng Group is engaged in agricultural planting such as alfalfa grass and has 3.42 million mu of land under its ownership. The company is actively exploring a unified large-scale farm management model and developing into a modern large-scale agricultural enterprise. Hainan Rubber is the largest natural rubber producer in China. The company owns more than 3.5 million mu of rubber plantations, and Hainan Agricultural Reclamation has more than 10 million mu of land resources in total, with expectations for further securitization.