New roadmap for rural economic development

Where is the way out for agriculture? Why have rural areas, which once served as the engine of the country's reform and opening-up initiative, become a drag on further reform? Why have farmers, once the forerunners of our country's reform, become a disadvantaged group? Carrying these questions, a team of experts from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences recently made an inspection tour of Jintang, Pixian and Dayi, three counties in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, which has made much progress in the comprehensive and coordinated urban-rural development. The purpose of this tour was to probe into the key to Chengdu's success and then popularize its experiences in other regions.

Chengdu once experienced the same process of land system reforms as other regions. During the early period after the founding of New China, the country pushed for a collective land-running system. It later turned out that the highly concentrated production model was seriously hampering farmers' enthusiasm for work although it played a positive role under the special historical period. In 1983, a large-scale campaign was launched nationwide to contract collective land to individual farmers. The new land system injected a new vigor into rural areas.

However, 30 years after the reform and opening-up, enormous changes have taken place in the country's industrial structure and development directions. Compared with industry and tertiary industry, the country's agriculture, which is still in the stage of individual operation, has a much lower output value and added value. This has made farmers vulnerable to ever-increasing competition and various market risks.