Agricultural modernization must be guided by the new development philosophy
Moderate prosperity or not, the key lies in the fellow villagers. As the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects enters the decisive stage, this Central Rural Work Conference thoroughly studied and implemented the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech on the work related to “agriculture, rural areas and farmers”, deeply analyzed the new situation facing agricultural and rural development, and proposed to vigorously advance agricultural modernization with the new development philosophy. This is of great significance for unifying thinking, deepening understanding, and doing a good job in the “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” work next year and in the next five years.
“Valuing agriculture and strengthening the foundation is the basis for securing the people.” The past five years have been another golden period for agricultural and rural development. Total grain output reached a new level, and the overall agricultural production capacity achieved a fundamental improvement. Farmers' incomes made new breakthroughs, reversing the trend of the widening income gap between urban and rural residents. Rural society took on a new look, and hundreds of millions of farmers gained more tangible benefits. When “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” improve, the overall situation becomes more secure. The outstanding achievements in rural reform and development have added to our confidence in overcoming all kinds of difficulties and risks, made important contributions to the successful conclusion of the “12th Five-Year Plan”, and also laid a solid foundation for a smooth start to the “13th Five-Year Plan” period.
When the situation is improving, caution is all the more necessary. We must clearly see that agriculture is still the short leg in the “synchronization of the four modernizations”, and rural areas are still the weak link in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects. Under the new normal of economic development, agricultural and rural development is facing a series of new challenges. Behind years of consecutive grain harvests, imports and stockpiles have both increased, and the dual squeeze of the price “ceiling” and the cost “floor” has become prominent; behind the steady development of agriculture, the dual constraints of resources and the environment are tightening; behind the sustained increase in farmers' incomes, the pressure on employment outside their hometowns is growing and the growth of wage income is slowing. To solve the problems in development, we must firmly establish awareness of the weak links, adhere to a problem-oriented approach, and, in accordance with the development philosophy of innovation, coordination, green development, opening up and sharing, vigorously advance agricultural modernization.
Guiding agricultural modernization with the new development philosophy is a profound transformation. Innovative development is the primary driving force; only by relying on institutional innovation can we solve the real-world problems of who will farm the land, how the land will be farmed, and who will build the new countryside, and activate the vitality of agricultural and rural development. Coordinated development is the path we must take; only by promoting coordinated urban-rural development can we solve the problem of the urban-rural dual structure and fill the weak links in “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” development. Green development is an inevitable requirement; only by respecting nature, following nature and protecting nature can we achieve sustainable agricultural development. Opening up is the general trend; only by making coordinated use of both international and domestic markets and both types of resources can we continuously raise agricultural competitiveness and gain the initiative in international competition. Shared development is an essential requirement; only by guiding farmers to actively participate in the building of modern agriculture can farmers, especially poor farmers, share more of the fruits of modernization and enter a moderately prosperous society in all respects together with the people of the whole country.
To advance agricultural modernization, the way forward lies in deepening reform. The many contradictions and problems currently facing agriculture are prominently manifested in structural aspects, mainly on the supply side. Strengthening supply-side structural reform in agriculture is an important task for the period ahead. To advance structural reform in agriculture, we must hold the bottom line of national food security, establish the concept of big agriculture and big food, focus on reducing inventories, lowering costs and filling weak links, optimize the structure of the agricultural industry, and truly form an effective supply of agricultural products with a more reasonable structure and stronger safeguards, so that the balance between supply and demand of agricultural products rises from a low level to a high level.
Agricultural modernization cannot be achieved overnight; it is a protracted battle. Practice has repeatedly proved that the more complex the macro environment, the more we must attach great importance to the work related to “agriculture, rural areas and farmers”. In a large developing country like ours with a population of more than 1.3 billion, none of stabilizing growth, ensuring supply and adjusting structure can be separated from agriculture, rural areas and farmers. At no time may we neglect agriculture, forget farmers or grow indifferent to rural areas. We must strictly implement the responsibility requirement that the work related to “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” is the “top priority”, always persist in not slackening in thinking, not reducing the strength of policies and not stopping reform, and must not allow the good momentum of agricultural and rural development to reverse.
Next year is the opening year of the “13th Five-Year Plan” period. We must unify our thinking with the decisions and arrangements of the central authorities, work hard with our heads down, strive to make a difference, guide agricultural modernization with the new development philosophy, strive for substantive progress in agricultural structural reform, continue to write new glories in the development of “agriculture, rural areas and farmers”, and make new contributions to winning the great victory in the decisive stage of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.