Rural vitalization key to China's modernization drive

BEIJING -- China has made historic achievements in eradicating absolute poverty, a problem that has plagued the Chinese nation for thousands of years. Next, the country will push forward rural vitalization in an all-round way, as a historic shift of focus in the work related to agriculture, rural areas, and farmers.

Efforts must be made to promote the efficiency and quality of the agricultural sector, make rural areas suitable to live and work in and make sure that farmers are affluent, according to China's two-day annual central rural work conference, which closed on Tuesday.

Without the modernization of agriculture and rural areas, China can never claim to have achieved modernization as a whole. To build a modern socialist country and accomplish the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, the most difficult and heavy task is in the countryside while the most extensive and deepest foundation is also in the countryside.

The country has decided to set a five-year transition period for counties that have shaken off poverty, and gradually shift the policy focus toward comprehensively promoting rural vitalization.

It will strengthen top-level design, adopt more vigorous measures and pool more strength to advance rural vitalization, a task no less challenging than poverty alleviation.

The country will speed up rural industry development to bring farmers more benefits, strengthen intellectual and moral standards, prevent and control pollutions in rural areas, accelerate reform in key fields in rural areas, prioritize rural infrastructure facility construction, facilitate integrated urban-rural development, and improve rural governance.

It eyes a rural area featuring thriving businesses, an eco-friendly environment, social etiquette and civility, effective governance, and a prosperous rural population. Its rural vitalization strategy embodying Chinese wisdom will provide a valuable reference to solving global rural problems.

The views don't necessarily reflect those of Qiushi Journal.