China issues No. 1 central document for 2023, highlights rural vitalization tasks

BEIJING -- China unveiled its "No. 1 central document" for 2023 on Monday, outlining nine tasks in comprehensively promoting rural vitalization this year.

As the first policy statement released by China's central authorities each year, the document is seen as an indicator of policy priorities. Work on agriculture and rural areas has been high on the agenda for 20 consecutive years since 2004.

The document called for enhanced efforts to stabilize production and ensure supply of grain and important agricultural products, to boost the construction of agricultural infrastructure, to strengthen support for agricultural science, technology and equipment, to consolidate and expand the achievements of poverty alleviation, and to promote the high-quality development of rural industries.

It further highlighted tasks needed to broaden the channels for farmers to increase their incomes and promote their ability to secure wealth, to solidly promote the building of a beautiful and harmonious countryside that is desirable to live and work in, to improve the rural governance system led by Party organizations, and to strengthen policy guarantees, and structural and institutional innovation.

The document noted that the most arduous and heavy task of building a modern socialist country in all respects still lies in the countryside.

With the accelerated evolution of global changes of a scale unseen in a century, China's development has entered a period of coexistence of strategic opportunities, risks and challenges, with increasing uncertainties and unpredictable factors, the document said, adding that it is extremely important to maintain the bedrock of "agriculture, rural areas and farmers" in a solid and healthy manner, as there is no room for error.

The Communist Party of China Central Committee believes that it is necessary to unremittingly consider solving the "agriculture, rural areas and farmers" problems as the top priority of the whole Party's work, and give full play to the efforts of the whole Party and society to comprehensively promote rural vitalization and accelerate modernization of agriculture and rural areas, according to the document.