China aims to achieve substantial progress in all-around rural revitalization by 2027

China aims to achieve substantial progress in all-around rural revitalization and promote the modernization of agriculture and rural areas to a new stage by 2027, according to a plan issued by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Wednesday.

The foundation of national food security will be further strengthened, and the overall agricultural production capacity will steadily increase, ensuring that the Chinese population's food supply remains firmly in their own hands, states the plan on all-around rural revitalization for the 2024-2027 period.

The plan underscores raising the level of guaranteeing grain and key agricultural product supplies, proposing the goal of ensuring that grain planting areas remain stable at about 1.75 billion mu (about 117 million hectares), with cereal areas around 1.45 billion mu.

It also urges efforts to promote a steady increase in grain production capacity to reach about 1.4 trillion jin (700 billion tons).

The developed regions in the east and suburban villages in cities of central and western regions where conditions permit will take the lead in achieving agricultural and rural modernization by 2027, according to the plan.

By 2035, decisive progress will be made in the comprehensive revitalization of rural areas, with agricultural modernization essentially realized and rural areas equipped with the basic conditions for modern living, the plan notes.

"Rural revitalization is underlined in China's efforts to build up its strength in agriculture. The plan further showed that the country has concrete measures to promote rural revitalization in phases with solid steps," Li Guoxiang, a research fellow at the Rural Development Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Li said that ensuring food supply, enriching rural culture and enhancing ecological protection are highlighted on the way to build up China's strength in agriculture. The plan clearly outlined specific measures for all-around rural revitalization, providing guidance for future agricultural development, the expert noted.

According to the plan, the country will accelerate the construction of modern agriculture and comprehensively strengthen the foundation of food security. It will improve supply security for grain and other important agricultural products and strengthen the construction of agricultural infrastructure. Moreover, the plan proposes to enhance support for agricultural technology and equipment, while increasing support for grain production.

The plan also requires the nation to deepen the construction of rural ecological civilization and speed up the transformation toward green development. The country will accelerate the green and low-carbon development of the agricultural industry by promoting green production technologies. In addition, it will improve the rural ecological environment.

Promoting the high-quality development of rural industries and increasing farmers' incomes are also in the spotlight in the latest plan. The measures include cultivating modern rural industries like rural farming, processing and distribution, and leisure tourism.

The country will implement policies to stabilize employment for migrant workers and mechanisms for safeguarding their rights and interests, as well as strengthening skills training and employment services.

The plan also aims to comprehensively promote rural consumption with measures including the improvement of the e-commerce and logistics systems and the support for sales of new-energy vehicles, as well as green and smart home appliances in rural areas.

Li noted that bringing benefits to farmers and expanding channels for farmers to increase their incomes is a priority for the country's agricultural development. "The country is ramping up efforts to boost domestic demand, and farmers are also major drivers for consumption. Therefore, increasing their incomes will not only contribute to the agricultural industry but also to the overall stable development of the national economy," Li said.

The plan also requires the nation to optimize the pattern of urban and rural development, vigorously cultivating rural talent and enriching rural culture. Meanwhile, it vows to build livable, workable, and beautiful villages, deepen agricultural and rural reforms to stimulate the vitality of rural development, and promote the modernization of rural governance.

The Central Rural Work Conference was held in Beijing from December 17 to 18. It was noted at the conference that focus should be given to studying and applying the experience gained from the Green Rural Revival Program and advancing comprehensive rural revitalization, according to Xinhua.

China made steady improvements in its agriculture sector and rural economy in 2024, Zhang Xingwang, vice minister of agriculture and rural affairs, told a State Council Information Office press conference on Monday.

China's total grain production exceeded 1.4 trillion jin (700 billion tons) for the first time last year, an increase of 22.18 billion jin from 2023, he said.

The per capita disposable income of farmers in counties that have been lifted out of poverty reached 12,384 yuan ($1,706.7) in the first three quarters of 2024, registering real growth of 6.5 percent compared with the same period of the previous year, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The per capita disposable income of rural residents reached 23,119 yuan, a real increase of 6.3 percent year-on-year, Zhang said, citing NBS data.