Rural vitalization charges full steam ahead

Aerial photo taken on January 11, 2020 shows an orange and sugarcane plantation in Luzhai Town of Luzhai County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region [Xinhua]

The annual Central Rural Work Conference held in Beijing on December 28-29, 2020, a milestone in China's work concerning agriculture, rural areas, and farmers, decided to double up on rural vitalization efforts, marking a historic focal shift after the nation's 2020 victory in extreme poverty eradication.

The recent conference made clear that from 2021 onward, the authorities will turn their focus to promote the modernization of the agricultural sector and rural areas with the goal of all-round rural vitalization.

China aims to develop itself into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious and beautiful by the centenary celebration of the People's Republic of China in 2049. Agricultural modernization is one of the main preconditions.

Ensuring grain security, agricultural development and rural infrastructure are all important tasks, and by no means less arduous than the fight against poverty. Of them, ensuring grain security is of the utmost urgency. China must maintain 120 million hectares of permanent farmland and prevent its urban construction from encroaching on farmland. It must develop high-standard farmland, able to withstand droughts and floods, to guarantee stable harvests. It must continue to advance agricultural science and technology and accelerate breakthroughs in key agricultural technologies such as the seed industry and soil management.

In the past, provincial governors were held accountable for their areas' grain security. The recent conference required that local Party committees and governments assume the same political responsibilities, and that Party secretaries of provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, also be held accountable for grain security. This requirement raises the standard of China's grain security accountability system.

In addition, the country will speed up its rural industry development to reap more benefits for farmers.

It eyes rural areas alive with thriving businesses, an eco-friendly environment, social etiquette and civility, effective governance, and a prosperous population.