Central Rural Economic Work Conference Focuses on Rural Land System Reform
The Central Rural Work Conference was held in Beijing on December 22 and 23. The conference will make comprehensive arrangements for next year's work related to “agriculture, rural areas and farmers”, and next year's Central “Document No. 1” will also be circulated for opinions at the conference, and will be released after revision and improvement. The focus of this conference will be on agricultural modernization, as well as many key reforms in the “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” fields, including the rural land system reform and the reform of agricultural product prices.
At the recently concluded Central Economic Work Conference, “accelerating the transformation of the agricultural development model” was listed as one of the five major economic tasks for next year. Stabilizing the output of grain and major agricultural products, continuously increasing farmers' incomes, improving the policy for the transfer of rural land management rights, developing modern agriculture, deepening various rural reforms, improving policies that strengthen agriculture and benefit farmers, improving the pricing mechanism for agricultural products, improving agricultural subsidy methods, and strengthening financial services were all mentioned.
Analysts pointed out that these contents will become the key discussion topics of the Central Rural Economic Work Conference, especially the development of modern agriculture, which best embodies the transformation of the agricultural development model.
The 2014 “Document No. 1” made overarching arrangements for advancing agricultural modernization and comprehensively deepening rural reform. The 2015 Central “Document No. 1” will focus on “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” for the 12th consecutive year, and the document is expected to continue deepening these reform measures and policies.
Previously, the Ministry of Agriculture held a special meeting and emphasized that in next year's agricultural and rural economic work, it is necessary to solidly advance the “transformation of the development model and adjustment of the structure” of agriculture, and continuously raise the contribution rate of agricultural scientific and technological progress and the utilization rate of agricultural resources.
An authoritative source at the Ministry of Agriculture told reporters, “The Ministry of Agriculture is formulating the Plan for Sustainable Agricultural Development in China. Based on the conditions of the land, agricultural development will be divided into four major zones: encouraged development zones, supported development zones, restricted development zones and prohibited development zones.”
Among them, the first two are key zones for agricultural development. Development priorities were also proposed at each stage: before production, emphasis is placed on the development of new varieties, new technologies, new equipment, new pesticides and fertilizers, and other commercial research and development, production and sales; during production, emphasis is placed on the development of facility agriculture, standardization of irrigated products, large-scale breeding, and full-process agricultural mechanization services. After production, emphasis is placed on agricultural product testing, processing, storage, logistics and sales, etc.
In addition, rural land system reform and agricultural product price reform will also become focal points of this Central Rural Work Conference.
In recent years, China has accelerated the pace of rural land system reform, and a number of major reform opinions have been issued successively. Following the release of the Opinions on Guiding the Orderly Transfer of Rural Land Contracted Management Rights and Developing Moderately Scaled Agricultural Operations, the Opinions on Pilot Work for Rural Land Expropriation, Entry of Collective Operational Construction Land into the Market, and Reform of the Homestead System, which was just reviewed by the Central Leading Group for Deepening Reform, is also expected to be issued before the end of the year.
The reporter learned from the Ministry of Agriculture that the Ministry of Agriculture is currently stepping up research and formulation of supporting policies for the above two opinions, and will issue as soon as possible guiding opinions on the qualification review, project review and risk guarantee fund system for industrial and commercial enterprises transferring land, and will propose operational policy recommendations and specific work guidance for the confirmation, registration and certification of land contracted management rights.
The Ministry of Agriculture also stated that it will promptly launch pilot experiments such as the orderly advancement of mortgage guarantees for land management rights, support for large-scale grain production, and government purchase of public welfare services, so as to explore experience that can be replicated and promoted.