The Central Rural Work Conference was held in Beijing from Dec. 19 to 20. Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, the conference faithfully implemented the guiding principles of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Second Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee on all fronts, Xi's important statements on work related to agriculture, rural areas and farmers, and the guiding principles of the Central Economic Work Conference. At this conference, the current situation and challenges facing work related to agriculture, rural areas and farmers were analyzed, and arrangements for work in this regard were made for 2024.

The CPC Central Committee had attached great importance to this conference, before which the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee put forward requirements at its meeting for the success of the conference and for better carrying out work in this regard.

Xi, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, Chinese president, and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made important instructions on work over agriculture, rural areas and farmers. He pointed out that despite the multiple negative factors including comparatively severe natural disasters, China's grain output has reached a record high in 2023, farmers' income has increased at a higher rate, and rural areas have been harmonious and stable.

To advance Chinese modernization, persistent efforts must be made to solidify the agricultural foundation and promote rural revitalization across the board. Guided by the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, it is essential to fully implement the guiding principles of the 20th CPC National Congress and the Second Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee. With building up strength in the country's agriculture as target, promoting rural revitalization across the board should be the focus for rural work concerning agriculture, rural areas and farmers on the new journey of the new era. Learning from the experience of the Green Rural Revival Program, efforts should be made to implement specific policies, take steady and incremental steps to sustain progress and achieve tangible results in the interest of the people, Xi said.

It is crucial to hold both Party committees and governments accountable for food security, and efforts must be made to secure the land acreage for grain production and increase yield per unit. It is imperative to maintain an all-encompassing approach to agriculture and food, attaching the same importance to the development of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery, with a view to building diversified sources for food supply. Arable land as the lifeline of agriculture must be protected, and those who illegally occupy and damage farmland must be subjected to punishment according to the law. Input must be increased, and the development and management of high-standard farmland strengthened to secure the increase of the total area of arable land and improvement of its quality, he said.

Xi called for endeavors to strengthen the dual drivers of technology and reform, intensify efforts to make breakthroughs in core technologies in key fields, and reform and improve the institutional mechanisms for work related to agriculture, rural areas, and farmers, so as to provide impetus and vitality for advancing agricultural modernization. It is important to do a good job in post-disaster recovery and reconstruction, and comprehensively improve capabilities for agricultural disaster prevention, mitigation, and relief. To prevent a large number of rural residents from falling back to poverty, efforts must be made to monitor how work is done in this regard, implement assistance measures, strengthen endogenous motivating forces, and continuously consolidate and expand the achievements of poverty alleviation. It is imperative to raise the level of rural industrial development, rural development, and rural governance, strengthen measures to increase farmers' income, and continuously make substantial progress and achieve phased results in promoting rural revitalization across the board.

Xi emphasized that CPC committees and governments at all levels must firmly implement the CPC Central Committee's decisions and arrangements on work related to agriculture, rural areas, and farmers, uphold the principle that priority must be given to the development of agriculture and rural areas, and the integrated development of urban and rural areas must be continuously promoted. They must shoulder responsibilities and take effective and creative actions based on actual conditions, and vigorously promote rural revitalization across the board in order to better promote the country's development through a Chinese path to modernization by accelerating the modernization of agriculture and rural areas.

Xi's important instructions were delivered at the meeting, and the Opinions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on Studying and Applying the Experience of the Green Rural Revival Program to Effectively Promote Rural Revitalization across the Board (Draft) was discussed. Liu Guozhong, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and vice premier of the State Council, attended the meeting and delivered a speech.

It was pointed out at the meeting that General Secretary Xi's important instructions, from the perspective of the overall situation of the Party and the country's cause, elucidated the strategic requirements and key directions for promoting rural revitalization across the board. The instructions are important in ideological guidance, strategic orientation, and practical relevance. They serve as the fundamental guidelines and action plans for carrying out the work related to agriculture, rural areas and rural residents on the new journey in the New Era. It is essential to thoroughly study and implement the gist of General Secretary Xi's important remarks and instructions in this regard. We must firmly support the establishment of Comrade Xi Jinping's core position both on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole and the guiding role of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, resolutely uphold Comrade Xi Jinping's core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole and uphold the Central Committee's authority and its centralized, unified leadership, so as to comprehensively and accurately grasp the connotations and practical requirements of the instructions, and ensure their thorough implementation.

It was stressed at the meeting that, with a focus on practical issues which farmers are very much concerned about, development philosophy, working methods and advancement mechanisms that are involved in the Green Rural Revival Program should be studied and applied to identify where breakthroughs can be made for rural revitalization and ensure work efficiency in this regard. It is imperative to do a good job in the production of grain and other important agricultural products, keep sown areas at a stable level, increase output per unit at a large scale, consolidate the results from the expansion of planting soybeans, explore ways to build mechanisms on interest compensation between major grain production provincial-level regions and those that need supply of grain from other provincial-level regions, and do a good job in disaster prevention, mitigation and relief in the agricultural sector, to ensure that the grain output for 2024 remains above 650 million metric tons. It is essential to strengthen farmland protection and development, refine the mechanism for coordinated protection of quantity, quality and ecosystem of farmland, give top priority to turning farmlands from the black soil areas of northeast China, the plain areas and regions with favorable water conservancy and irrigation conditions into high-standard ones, and appropriately increase investment in this regard. Efforts are also urged to support the building of platforms for sci-tech innovation in the agricultural sector, and speed up advancing the initiative for the revitalization of the seed industry. Monitoring and assistance mechanisms to prevent people from slipping back to poverty should be implemented better, support through developing industries and employment should be more effective, and a mechanism for the regular assistance to low-income rural residents and underdeveloped areas should be built.

By pursuing industrialization, high quality and green rural development, targeted and pragmatic efforts should be made to cultivate rural industries, improve the mechanism for greater synergy in farming, and implement the initiatives to boost farmers' income. To adapt to the trend in rural population changes, work should be done to optimize the configuration of rural communities, industrial structure, and public service allocation, with the aim of advancing rural development in a solid and orderly manner. Actions should be taken to improve rural living environment, and address the deficiencies in rural infrastructure. In coordinating new urbanization with rural revitalization across the board, efforts should be made to increase the carrying and governance capacity of county towns, and promote the county-level integrated development of urban and rural areas. It is essential to improve rural governance, promote rural revitalization through Party building, and apply and further develop the "Fengqiao model" for better community-level governance in the Peaceful Countryside initiative. We will vigorously promote the cultural-ethical progress in the rural area and continue to facilitate positive changes in rural customs. We will strengthen rural reform and innovation and encourage local endeavors in exploring and experimenting with new institutions with the awareness about where to toe the line.

The need was emphasized at the meeting to strengthen the overall leadership of the Party over the work related to agriculture, rural areas, and farmers, to ensure that secretaries of CPC committees at five levels take concrete responsibilities for rural revitalization. Requirements must be implemented for prioritizing the development of agriculture and rural areas, and policy support and supply of resources must be secured. It is imperative to improve approaches, work style, and conduct fact-finding missions, in order to adapt to the natural, economic, and social development laws, and to coordinate timing, intensity and effectiveness of the work. Efforts should be pooled from all walks of life to hammer away at the implementation of the CPC Central Committee's decisions and arrangements on work related to agriculture, rural areas and farmers.

The first plenary meeting was chaired by Wu Zhenglong, state councilor and secretary-general of the State Council.

Members of the Central Rural Work Leading Group, leading officials from provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the central government, cities specially designated in the state plan, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, as well as those from central Party and government departments attended the meeting. Also present at the meeting were leaders of relevant people's organizations, financial institutions, and enterprises, and those from relevant departments of the Central Military Commission.