Central Rural Work Conference Leverages More Social Capital into Agriculture and Rural Areas

Leveraging More Social Capital into Agriculture and Rural Areas

The Central Rural Work Conference was held in Beijing to deploy agriculture and rural work for 2016 and the “13th Five-Year Plan” period

The Central Rural Work Conference was held in Beijing from the 24th to the 25th. The conference fully implemented the spirit of the 18th CPC National Congress and the third, fourth and fifth plenary sessions of the 18th CPC Central Committee as well as the Central Economic Work Conference, summarized the work on “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” during the “12th Five-Year Plan” period, analyzed the current situation of agriculture and rural areas, and deployed agriculture and rural work for 2016 and the “13th Five-Year Plan” period.

The CPC Central Committee and the State Council attached great importance to this conference. Before the conference, the meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, the meeting of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and the executive meeting of the State Council put forward clear requirements for convening this conference well and doing a good job in agriculture and rural work. Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, President of the State, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, made important instructions on doing a good job in the work on “agriculture, rural areas and farmers”. Li Keqiang, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Premier of the State Council, made written instructions.

Xi Jinping stressed that valuing agriculture and consolidating the foundation is the basis for securing the people. During the “12th Five-Year Plan” period, China's agricultural and rural development achieved abundant results and played an important role in winning the initiative in overall work. At the same time, it must be seen that China's agricultural and rural development still faces many difficulties and challenges, and the work on “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” must never be neglected or relaxed at any time. During the “13th Five-Year Plan” period, it is necessary to persist in making the solution of the “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” issue a top priority in the work of the whole Party, firmly establish and effectively implement the development concepts of innovation, coordination, green, openness and sharing, increase efforts to strengthen agriculture, benefit farmers and enrich farmers, deeply advance all rural reforms, break through the difficulties of “agriculture, rural areas and farmers”, enhance the driving force for innovation, cultivate development advantages, actively advance agricultural modernization, solidly do a good job in poverty alleviation and development, raise the level of building a new socialist countryside, and make agriculture and rural areas a vast world where much can be accomplished.

Li Keqiang pointed out that since the “12th Five-Year Plan”, the work on “agriculture, rural areas and farmers” has achieved remarkable results and become a prominent highlight of economic and social development. During the “13th Five-Year Plan” period, it is necessary to implement new development concepts, break through new development difficulties, consolidate the foundation of modern agriculture, adjust and optimize the agricultural structure, give play to the leading role of various forms of appropriately scaled operations, and focus on improving agricultural quality, efficiency and competitiveness. Attention should be paid to analyzing new situations that appear after a bumper grain harvest, adopting targeted measures, and continuing to mobilize farmers' enthusiasm for developing modern agriculture. It is necessary to speed up rural infrastructure construction, place the focus of social undertaking development in rural areas and towns that absorb a relatively large number of people transferred from agriculture, and promote the coordinated development of new urbanization and new rural construction. It is necessary to advance innovation in systems and mechanisms, stimulate the entrepreneurial and innovative vitality of hundreds of millions of farmers, cultivate new industries and new forms of business, and continuously expand new space for agricultural and rural development and new channels for farmers to increase income and become prosperous.

The conference discussed the “Several Opinions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on Implementing New Development Concepts, Accelerating Agricultural Modernization and Achieving the Goal of Building a Moderately Prosperous Society in All Respects (Discussion Draft)”. Wang Yang, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council, attended the conference and delivered a speech.

The conference pointed out that during the “12th Five-Year Plan” period, China's grain production increased continuously, farmers' incomes continued to grow relatively quickly, and rural society was harmonious and stable, making major contributions to the overall situation of economic and social development. For agriculture and rural work during the “13th Five-Year Plan” period, it is necessary to adhere to the development concepts of innovation, coordination, green, openness and sharing, firmly establish a strong awareness of shortcomings, persist in being problem-oriented, effectively lengthen agriculture, the “short leg” of the “synchronization of the four modernizations”, and fill in the shortcoming of rural areas in building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.

The conference emphasized that efforts should be made to strengthen structural reform on the supply side of agriculture, improve the quality and efficiency of the agricultural supply system, make the supply of agricultural products sufficient in quantity and make varieties and quality meet consumer needs, and truly form an effective supply of agricultural products with a reasonable structure and strong guarantees. At present, great importance should be attached to reducing inventory, lowering costs and filling in shortcomings. It is necessary to speed up the digestion of excessively large inventories of agricultural products and speed up the processing and conversion of grain; through developing appropriately scaled operations, reducing the unreasonable use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and carrying out socialized services, reduce production costs and improve agricultural efficiency and competitiveness; strengthen weak links in agricultural supply such as agricultural infrastructure, and increase the production of agricultural products in short supply on the market. It is necessary to establish the concept of large agriculture and large food, and promote the coordinated planning of grain, cash crops and feed, the combination of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery, the integration of planting, breeding and processing, and the integrated development of the primary, secondary and tertiary industries. Safeguarding national food security is the basic bottom line of agricultural structural reform. It is necessary to protect rations such as rice and wheat, protect arable land, protect production capacity, and protect grain production in main producing areas, especially core producing areas, to ensure that grains are basically self-sufficient and rations are absolutely safe. It is necessary to fully give play to the leading role of various forms of appropriately scaled agricultural operations in structural reform. Agricultural support policies should be tilted toward entities engaged in scaled operations, and at the same time attention should be paid to letting farmers share the results. It is necessary to improve the price formation mechanism and purchase and storage policies for grain and other important agricultural products, and provide impetus for agricultural structural reform.

The conference emphasized that local Party committees and governments at all levels must unremittingly cultivate an atmosphere of valuing agriculture and place agriculture and rural work in a top-priority position. Priority should be given to ensuring fiscal input into agriculture and rural areas, ensuring that the intensity does not weaken and the total amount increases. It is necessary to increase the integration of agriculture-related funds, give play to the guiding role of fiscal input in structural reform, and leverage more social capital into agriculture and rural areas. It is necessary to tap the internal potential of agriculture, promote the integrated development of the primary, secondary and tertiary industries, make good use of rural resources, assets and funds, and increase farmers' incomes through multiple channels. It is necessary to deeply advance targeted poverty alleviation and targeted poverty eradication, and ensure the completion of the goals and tasks of poverty alleviation. It is necessary to strengthen the building of rural grassroots Party organizations, improve villagers' self-governance, and enhance the level of rural governance. It is necessary to conduct in-depth investigation and research, respect farmers' grassroots practice, and continuously open up new prospects for agriculture and rural work.