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Full Text: China's economic, social development plan
Posted: March-21-2008Adjust font size:

2. We will strengthen the position of agriculture as the foundation of the economy and effectively promote the development of a new countryside.

1) Fiscal support for agriculture and the countryside will continue to increase. Funding for rural development will be increased by making adjustments in the way revenue from tax on using arable land for nonagricultural purposes is spent and reforming the way urban construction and maintenance tax receipts are used. We will step up efforts to develop agricultural infrastructure, continuing to carry out projects to retrofit irrigation facilities in large irrigated areas with water-saving equipment, to set up model water-efficient irrigation projects and to upgrade drainage pumping stations in the central region, accelerating efforts to reinforce large and medium-sized dilapidated reservoirs as well as small but important ones, and improving small water conservation facilities. We will support the construction of water supply facilities, power grids, roads and methane facilities in rural areas with the goal of supplying an additional 32 million rural residents with safe drinking water, increasing the number of rural families supplied with methane by 5million and building a group of large and medium-sized methane facilities.

2) We will promote steady growth in the production of major farm products. Arable land will be strictly protected, and protection of basic farmland in particular will be strengthened. We will increase support for major grain producing areas and grain farmers. We will institute the grain strategy project, accelerate development of core grain production areas and begin developing secondary production areas to keep annual grain output stable at about 500 million tons. We will diligently carry out all policy measures to support hog production, dairy farming and oilseed production, stabilize the cotton cultivation area, restore and expand the oilseed cultivation area and continue to support the production of sugar crops. Development of livestock and aquaculture production will be strongly encouraged.

3) The policy of agricultural subsidies will be strengthened and improved. We will continue to provide assistance directly to grain farmers and raise the overall level of general direct subsidies for agricultural supplies in response to price rises, expand the scale of subsidies for growing improved crop varieties and the scope of eligibility for subsidies for purchasing agricultural machinery and tools, and appropriately raise minimum grain purchase prices. Trials of subsidized agricultural insurance premiums will be expanded.

4) The channels for increasing farmer incomes will be expanded. We will work hard to promote development of high-quality, high-yield and cost-efficient agriculture, accelerate development of rural secondary and tertiary industries and energetically promote development of the local economies of counties. We will continue to successfully run modern agriculture demonstration projects and the project to develop model towns to demonstrate comprehensive economic development. We will guide farmers in improving the mix of crops they grow, encourage them to raise livestock on scientifically formulated feed and promote industrialized agricultural operations. The project to train personnel with the practical skills needed for a new countryside will be implemented and vocational training for rural migrant workers will be improved. We will step up efforts to alleviate poverty through development and make innovations in its working mechanisms, and we will continue to successfully carry out the work of substituting work for relief and relocating people from inhospitable areas to reduce the size of the poor population.

5) The system of comprehensive social services for agriculture will be improved. We will develop harvesting, storage and transport services for agricultural products and distribution services for agricultural supplies. Application of agricultural science and technology will be increased and the systems for producing superior varieties and breeds, preventing and controlling plant and animal diseases, ensuring the quality and safety of agricultural products and preventing and mitigating natural disasters will be improved. We will strongly support the development of specialized farmer cooperatives of all types and leading agricultural production enterprises.

6) Overall rural reform and reform of the system of collective forest rights will be accelerated. The mechanism for ensuring steady growth of agricultural funding will be improved. The transfer of farmers' land-use rights will be promoted and standardized. We will actively yet prudently work to reduce rural debts at township and village levels and in about three years basically clear up longstanding debts for rural compulsory education, mainly by increasing central and local budget allocations. Reform of farms run by overseas Chinese will be continued.

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Source:Editor: Lydia
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