Resolution of the CPC Central Committee on Several Major Issues Concerning Agriculture and Rural Work

Adopted by the Third Plenary Session of the 15th Central Committee of the CPC on October 14, 1998. Included in the Selection and Compilation of Important Documents since the 15th National Congress (Vol. 1).

The “Resolution” consists of 10 parts: (1) Basic experience of the rural reform in the past 20 years; (2) Objectives and principles for the cross-century development of agriculture and countryside; (3) Realizing the long-term stability of the two-tier management system based on household contract management and combined with unification and division; (4) Deepening the reform of the circulation system of agricultural products and improving the marketing system of agricultural products; (5) Accelerating the construction of agricultural infrastructure with water conservancy as the focus and improve agricultural ecological environment; (6) Relying on the scientific and technological progress and optimize the structure of agriculture and rural economy; (7) Promoting the construction of a well-off society in the countryside and increase efforts to tackle poverty; (8) Strengthening the construction of democracy and legal system at the grass-roots level in the countryside; (9) Strengthening the construction of socialist spiritual civilization in the countryside; (10) Improving the construction of Party organizations and cadres at the grass-roots level in the countryside.

The “Resolution” stresses that the questions of agriculture, countryside and farmers are major issues that have a bearing on the overall situation of Reform and Opening-up and modernization. Without the stability of the countryside, there will be no stability for the whole country; without the prosperity of the farmers, there will be no prosperity for the whole country; without the modernization of agriculture, there will be no modernization of the whole national economy. If we stabilise the rural areas, we will have the initiative to grasp the whole situation. We must solve the existing problems and build a rich, democratic and civilised new socialist countryside. To this end, we must adhere to the following ten guidelines: (1) Always put agriculture at the forefront of national economic development; (2) Stabilise the basic rural policy in the long term; (3) Not relaxing food production and actively develop diversified business operations; (4) Implementing science and education to promote agriculture; (5) Achieving sustainable agricultural development; (6) Vigorously developing township enterprises and transfer surplus agricultural labour through multiple channels; (7) Effectively reducing the burden on farmers; (8) Implementing the basic state policy of family planning; (9) Promoting the construction of democratic politics at the grassroots level in rural areas; (10) Building material and spiritual civilization with both hands.

The “Resolution” stresses that the emergence of industrialized operations in the countryside is one of the realistic ways for China's agriculture to gradually modernize itself. The policy of extending the land contract period for another 30 years should be firmly implemented. This policy of the “Resolution” has given peace of mind to hundreds of millions of farmers and promoted agricultural development.